fluoride

plural fluorides

1. countableuncountablechemistryA binary compound of fluorine and another element or radical.
   1. countableuncountablechemistryAny of certain salts of hydrofluoric acid, such as the simple metallic ones.

      However, too much fluoride produces a mottling effect on teeth. Large doses of fluoride are actually toxic.

      2000, Lawrie Ryan, Advanced Chemistry for You, Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes, →ISBN, page 54

      2 more examples

      The public health practice of adding fluoride to water supplies faces new scrutiny as a few recent reports raise concerns about potential health risks and suggest the benefits may not be as significant as they once were.

      2024 October 3, Deidre McPhillips, “Fluoride in water prevents some cavities but concern about health risks raises questions about the tradeoffs”, in CNN

      McCoy’s team, including 66 researchers across four continents, found the salt and minerals left behind as water on Bennu, or its larger parent asteroid, evaporated. The minerals include sodium phosphates, carbonates, sulfates, chlorides and fluorides, some of which are necessary to the formation of life.

      2025 January 29, Ashley Strickland, “Historic asteroid sample reveals the ‘building blocks of life are in fact extraterrestrial in origin,’ scientists say”, in CNN

      Synonyms: fluate, fluat

2. countableuncountablechemistryThe anionic form of a fluorine atom.