Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
potassium iodide

potassium iodide

1 4.7
A white salt used in medicine, photography, and to add iodine to table salt
  • noun
  • /pəˈtæsiəm ˈaɪədaɪd/
  • Specialized
translation icon : yoduro de potasio
  • Markey praised her work on legislation that requires the federal government to make potassium iodide available to communities near nuclear power reactors.
  • potassium iodide pills
  • potassium iodide tablets
  • doses of potassium iodide

And to protect the thyroid gland, take potassium iodide tablets.

Examples

  • And to protect the thyroid gland, take potassium iodide tablets.

    Harvard University

  • Anything your DIL might maybe possibly need for a radiological hazard—potassium iodide, for instance—would be provided by local authorities.

    Blog text (20)

  • A friend in Japan tried to get potassium iodide only to find out that the government holds control of the entire supply.

    Blog text (20)

  • Interest is also high at Fleming Pharmaceuticals, a St. Louis County company that makes potassium iodide in liquid form.

    Blog text (20)

  • A reaction using nitric acid and potassium iodide reagent produces a canary yellow precipitate, a positive indicator for lead.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Potassium iodide is used to protect the thyroid gland during radiation emergencies.

  • Doctors often recommend potassium iodide to prevent thyroid cancer from radiation exposure.

  • Potassium iodide is included in iodized salt to ensure adequate iodine intake for health.

Surface Forms

potassium iodide singular
potassium iodides plural

Morphology

potassium + iodide

This is a straightforward chemical compound name composed of 'potassium' and 'iodide'; a learner who knows those constituent meanings will infer it denotes the potassium salt containing iodide. The meaning is fully compositional and follows common cross-linguistic chemical-naming patterns, so it is immediately understandable to learners familiar with the component terms.

Etymology

Potassium iodide is a chemical name made from two parts: potassium (a metal) and iodide (from the element iodine). It is a white 'salt' like table salt that gives 'iodine', so the name helps you remember it is the substance used in medicine and to add iodine to salt.