silver nitrate

noun

: an irritant compound AgNO3 that in contact with organic matter turns black and is used as a chemical reagent, in photography, and in medicine especially as an antiseptic and caustic

Examples of silver nitrate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But the director kept a copy, shot on highly unstable silver nitrate film, in his freezer. Paula L. Woods, Los Angeles Times, 17 July 2023 Never mind that silver nitrate is notoriously combustible and emits a gas that can destroy other film emulsions. Elizabeth Hand, Washington Post, 17 July 2023 Eddington used silver nitrate photographic plates to capture images of the sky, and the image resolution wasn’t precise. Terena Bell, Discover Magazine, 5 May 2017 That’s incredible because so many movies from that era were filmed on silver nitrate and disintegrated completely, Whitehead told me. Maggie Menderski, The Courier-Journal, 20 Apr. 2022 The team stopped at an emergency care facility, where doctors cauterized the wound with silver nitrate and forbid Schneider from swimming at the state meet that day. Matt Le Cren, chicagotribune.com, 10 Dec. 2021 Barrow agreed and immediately crossed Ruth’s name off the lineup card, sending him home with the doctor, who liberally swabbed his throat with a caustic compound of silver nitrate, probably a 10 percent solution, to ill effect. Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Apr. 2020 Ruth came down with the Spanish flu in mid May after a day at Revere Beach and was laid up for almost two weeks because a doctor overtreated his throat with silver nitrate. Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 29 Mar. 2020 The negatives were turned into prints using paper that was coated with ammonium and fermented egg white, or albumen, and sensitized with silver nitrate. Emily Toomey, Smithsonian, 12 Aug. 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'silver nitrate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1833, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of silver nitrate was in 1833

Dictionary Entries Near silver nitrate

Cite this Entry

“Silver nitrate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/silver%20nitrate. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

silver nitrate

noun
: a compound used especially in photography and as an antiseptic in medicine

Medical Definition

silver nitrate

noun
: an irritant compound AgNO3 that in contact with organic matter turns black and is used as a chemical reagent, in photography, and in medicine especially as an antiseptic and caustic

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