protonate

P3R1O1T1O1N1A1T1E1

verb

To add one or more protons to (a molecule, ion or radical).

“protonate the carbonyl group”

OriginEnglish proton ← Ancient Greek πρῶτον (prôton) ← Proto-Indo-European *pró →
Scrabble 11
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Meanings

verbprotonate (third-person singular simple present protonates, present participle protonating, simple past and past participle protonated)

present singular third person protonates · participle present protonating · participle past protonated · past protonated

  1. transitivechemistryTo add one or more protons to (a molecule, ion or radical).

    protonate the carbonyl group

  2. intransitivechemistryTo acquire an additional proton.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
protonize

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*per-der.?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*pér
  3. Proto-Indo-European*pró
  4. Ancient Greekπρό (pró)
  5. Ancient Greekπρῶτον (prôton)
  6. Englishproton
  7. Englishprotonate

From proton + -ate (verb-forming suffix).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish protonoida
  • protonoidaTo add one or more protons
Spanish protonar
  • protonarTo add one or more protons
Cite this entry
APA

protonate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protonate

MLA

“protonate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protonate. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “protonate,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protonate.

Source: protonate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.