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Glite Dictionary
microcurie

microcurie

7.7
A very small unit for measuring radiation equal to one millionth of a curie
  • noun
  • /ˌmaɪkroʊˈkjʊəri/
  • Specialized
translation icon : microcurie
  • In nuclear medicine, a dose might be prescribed in microcuries to ensure safety.

Examples

  • A microcurie is a measure of activity.

    Blog text (20)

  • Is that the same as a microcurie?

    Blog text (20)

  • The scientist measured the sample's radioactivity and found it to be one microcurie.

  • After the experiment, they recorded the amount of radiation emitted at one microcurie.

How Radioactive

curie
  • Archaic
1 9.7
millicurie
  • Specialized
9.3
microcurie
  • Specialized
7.7

Surface Forms

microcurie singular
microcuries plural

Morphology

microcurie = curie (transparent) = micro + curie

The meaning is directly compositional: 'micro-' means one millionth of, and the base word 'curie' names the unit being scaled.

Etymology

Microcurie combines the prefix micro-, the same micro- you see in microphone and microscope, meaning 'one millionth' or 'very small', and curie, the unit named for the scientist Marie Curie. So a microcurie is a very small part of a curie, used to measure tiny amounts of radioactivity.