barium
|ba-ri-um|
/ˈbɛəriəm/
heavy alkaline-earth metal
Etymology
'barium' originates from New Latin 'barium', ultimately from Greek 'barys', where 'barys' meant 'heavy'.
'barys' in Greek was used in New Latin as 'barium' (and related noun 'baryta' for the oxide); in the early 19th century the name 'barium' was adopted for the element discovered from baryta.
Initially, the root meant 'heavy', and it was applied to the oxide 'baryta'; over time the term came to denote the element itself, 'barium', and its compounds.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a chemical element with atomic number 56 and symbol Ba; a soft, silvery alkaline earth metal that forms compounds such as barium sulfate and barium chloride.
Barium sulfate is used as a contrast agent in X-ray imaging because barium strongly absorbs X-rays.
Last updated: 2026/01/16 20:14