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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 other people and forces also want those reels of silver nitrate, and the friends’ good fortune abruptly shifts to nightmarish encounters with Karina’s ghost, and worse.
—Elizabeth Hand, Washington Post, 17 July 2023
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
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
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 5 Nov. 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
More from Merriam-Webster on silver nitrate
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about silver nitrate
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