isotope
noun
iso·tope
| \ ˈī-sə-ˌtōp
\
\
Definition of isotope
1
: any of two or more species of atoms of a chemical element with the same atomic number and nearly identical chemical behavior but with differing atomic mass or mass number and different physical properties
2
: nuclide
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Other Words from isotope
isotopic
\ ˌī-sə-ˈtä-pik
, -ˈtō- \
adjective
, -ˈtō- \
adjective
isotopically
\ ˌī-sə-ˈtä-pi-k(ə-)lē
, -ˈtō- \
adverb
, -ˈtō- \
adverb
Examples of isotope in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Helium transfers some of its energy to the new hydrogen isotopes entering the vessel, so that the plasma is self-sustained. — Giulia Pacchioni, Scientific American, "The Road to Fusion," 26 Aug. 2019 The team looked at both microscopic patterns of wear, which give an indication of the types of foodstuffs the creatures were chewing on, as well as the proportions of two carbon isotopes within the tooth enamel. — John Pickrell, National Geographic, "Saber-tooth surprise: Fossils redraw picture of the fearsome big cat," 5 Aug. 2019 In the new study, Dr. Grün tested samples using a technique called laser ablation mass spectrometry that measures levels of uranium isotopes. — Robert Lee Hotz, WSJ, "Fossil Suggests Earliest Known Movement of Humans Out of Africa," 10 July 2019 Chandrayaan-2, which will explore the Moon's southern hemisphere, will also be looking for the isotope helium-3, which could be mined for use in nuclear fusion. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "India Is Going to the Moon in July," 13 June 2019 The accident occurred during the engineering and technical support of isotope power sources on a liquid propulsion system, Rosatom said in a statement. — NBC News, "Russian nuclear agency says five killed in accident at test site," 10 Aug. 2019 That makes enamel the gold standard in terms of preserving isotopes. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Fossilized teeth of Ice Age predators yield clues to why certain species survived," 6 Aug. 2019 The number of protons defines the element to which an atom belongs, but the number of neutrons may vary, the variants being known as isotopes. — The Economist, "Who did the Maya sacrifice?," 1 Aug. 2019 In addition, fish from area waterways were found to contain uranium and plutonium and deer killed by cars showed uranium isotopes in their livers, the suit said. — Sarah Brookbank, Cincinnati.com, "Lawsuit: Residents near Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant have been 'sacrificial lambs'," 30 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'isotope.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for isotope
isotope
noun
English Language Learners Definition of isotope
chemistry
: any one of various forms in which the atoms of a chemical element can occur
See the full definition for isotope in the English Language Learners Dictionary
isotope
noun
iso·tope
| \ ˈī-sə-ˌtōp
\
\
Medical Definition of isotope
1
: any of two or more species of atoms of a chemical element with the same atomic number and position in the periodic table and nearly identical chemical behavior but with differing atomic mass or mass number and different physical properties
2
: nuclide
Other Words from isotope
isotopic
\ ˌī-sə-ˈtäp-ik
, -ˈtō-pik
\
adjective
, -ˈtō-pik
\
adjective
isotopically
\ -ˈtäp-i-k(ə-)lē
, -ˈtō-pi-
\
adverb
, -ˈtō-pi-
\
adverb
isotopy
\ ˈī-sə-ˌtō-pē
, ī-ˈsät-ə-pē
\
noun,
plural isotopies
, ī-ˈsät-ə-pē
\
noun,
plural isotopies
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