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Glite Dictionary
🔤 Sound switch ⚗️ Chemical exchange
metathetic

metathetic

9.9
A chemical reaction where parts of two molecules swap to make new chemicals
  • adjective
  • /ˌmɛtəˈθɛtɪk/
  • Specialized
: metatético
  • The chemist observed a metathetic reaction that produced a white precipitate in the solution.

Examples

  • A metathetic exchange can result in the formation of entirely different chemical compounds.

  • Certain industrial processes rely on metathetic methods to synthesize new materials efficiently.

  • This is a metathetic reaction.

  • The metathetic reaction produced unexpected results.

  • The chemist observed a metathetic reaction that produced a white precipitate in the solution.

  • Certain industrial processes rely on metathetic methods to synthesize new materials efficiently.

  • A metathetic exchange can lead to the development of entirely new chemical compounds.

Surface Forms

metathetic positive

Morphology

metathetic = metathesis (semi-transparent) = metathesis + ic

Formed by adding the adjectival suffix '-ic' to the noun 'metathesis'; the morphemes are recognizable but the meaning is technical and may not be obvious to general learners.

Etymology

Metathetic comes from Greek parts meta- 'change' (as in metamorphosis) and tithenai 'to put', meaning 'put in a different place'. So a metathetic reaction is one where parts of molecules are swapped or moved to form new compounds.