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Glite Dictionary
phosphine

phosphine

1 9.9
A colorless gas that can catch fire, smells like fish, and is poisonous used to kill pests
  • noun
  • /ˈfɑsˌfin/
  • Specialized
: fosfina
  • So, Rahini, how long have we known that phosphine exists in the atmospheres of the gas giants?

The suspicion that phosphine might be present on Venus is not entirely new.

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Examples

  • The laboratory detected high levels of phosphine, which indicated potential pest problems.

  • The suspicion that phosphine might be present on Venus is not entirely new.

    Sabine Hossenfelder

  • When pockets of methane and phosphine escape, they produce lights that are luminous and occasionally explode, causing a great deal of fright and distress in those who observe the display.

    Academic text (2002)

  • Because phosphine is toxic, safety precautions must be taken when handling it in chemical experiments.

  • In 1996, a plant released a cloud of deadly phosphine and hydrogen chloride, which can cause severe skin burns.

Surface Forms

phosphine singular
phosphines plural

Morphology

phosphine = phosphorus (opaque) = phosph + ine

Although formed from the phosphorus root plus the chemical suffix '-ine', the specific technical meaning (a particular phosphorus hydride gas) is specialized and not derivable by an average learner from 'phosphorus' alone.

Etymology

The word phosphine comes from phosphorus, a name that means 'light-bearer', plus the chemical ending -ine. So phosphine is a phosphorus-based chemical that is a poisonous, flammable gas.