entry
chlorine
/ˈklɔːriːn/Yellow-green reactive chemical element, atomic number 17
From Greek χλωρός (khlōrós) (pale green).
from Ancient Greek χλωρός (khlōrós, “pale green”) + -ine.
Word Ancestry
from Ancient Greek χλωρός (khlōrós, “pale green”) + -ine.
In 1774, chemists first encountered chlorine but treated it as “oxymuriatic acid gas,” a rather alarming name for a yellow-green substance that attacks living tissue and metals alike. Sir Humphry Davy gave it a cleaner identity in 1810, borrowing Ancient Greek χλωρός, meaning “pale green,” and attaching the chemical ending -ine. That same color-family survives in chloroform and chlorophyll, so a swimming pool, a leafy plant, and an old-fashioned anesthetic are linguistic cousins. The element belongs to the halogens—literally “salt-producers”—but chlorine’s name remembers something more immediate: the eerie greenish-yellow gas itself, glowing like chemistry’s warning label.
The Story
In 1774, chemists first encountered chlorine but treated it as “oxymuriatic acid gas,” a rather alarming name for a yellow-green substance that attacks living tissue and metals alike. Sir Humphry Davy gave it a cleaner identity in 1810, borrowing Ancient Greek χλωρός, meaning “pale green,” and attaching the chemical ending -ine. That same color-family survives in chloroform and chlorophyll, so a swimming pool, a leafy plant, and an old-fashioned anesthetic are linguistic cousins. The element belongs to the halogens—literally “salt-producers”—but chlorine’s name remembers something more immediate: the eerie greenish-yellow gas itself, glowing like chemistry’s warning label.
Modern Usage
Chlorine or pool chemicals, especially in casual references to swimming pools or their effects on hair and smell
Notable References
- Urban Dictionary entries describing pool chlorine and its effects on hair and odor
Kin & Kindred
From 'χλωρός (khlōrós)'·pale green
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia
Wiktionary