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Definition of "barium" [ba•ri•um]

  • A soft, silvery-white alkaline-earth metal, used to deoxidize copper and in various alloys. Atomic number 56; atomic weight 137.33; melting point 725°C; boiling point 1,140°C; specific gravity 3.50; valence 2. See Table at element. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "barium" in a sentence
  • "In their attempt to separate radium from bismuth, both contained in pitchblende, Marie and Pierre found that by crystallizing the chloride of radioactive barium from a solution, they obtained crystals that were more radioactive and richer in radium than the chloride which remained resolved."
  • "The barium is thick and white and coats everything as you swallow it, and somehow this makes everything show up on the x-ray."
  • "The water is also often laden with barium, which is found in underground ore deposits and can cause high blood pressure, and radium, a naturally occurring radioactive substance."