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americium
noun
am·er·i·ci·um
ˌa-mə-ˈri-shē-əm
-sē-
: a radioactive metallic element produced artificially by bombarding plutonium with high-energy neutrons see Chemical Elements Table
Examples of americium in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Alternatively, Cotruvo suggests, captured americium and curium could be recycled back into nuclear fuel.
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Nikk Ogasa, Scientific American, 19 Nov. 2021
Along with americium, the discovery of curium was related to the top-secret Manhattan Project, so no announcement was made until WWII ended.
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Allison Futterman, Discover Magazine, 17 Sep. 2022
Some of those more obscure elements play fundamental roles in shaping modern-day society: lighter flints use cerium, smoke detectors have americium inside, and color televisions need Europium to function.
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Nathaniel Scharping, Discover Magazine, 7 Nov. 2016
The team created 30 atoms of element 115 by firing a beam of calcium atoms at a piece of americium foil.
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Shannon Palus, Discover Magazine, 19 Dec. 2013
The most stable isotopes of americium and curium decay faster than uranium’s most stable isotopes.
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Scientific American, 1 Apr. 2022
In Colorado, for instance, 27 buildings house scary-sounding elements such as cesium 137, cobalt 60, americium 241 and iridium 192.
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Sarah Scoles, Scientific American, 11 Mar. 2022
Many other toxic and radioactive contaminants have also been found at Rocky Flats in addition to plutonium: americium, uranium, cadmium, PCBs, beryllium, and more.
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Longreads, 10 Aug. 2020
Readings for contaminants like uranium and americium were also found to be well below the threshold for health concerns, the report concluded.
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John Aguilar, The Denver Post, 6 Sep. 2019
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'americium.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
New Latin, from America + New Latin -ium
First Known Use
1946, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near americium
Cite this Entry
“Americium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/americium. Accessed 10 Jun. 2024.
Kids Definition
americium
noun
am·er·i·ci·um
ˌam-ə-ˈris-ē-əm
-ˈrish-
: a radioactive metallic element produced by bombardment of plutonium with high-energy neutrons see element
Medical Definition
americium
noun
am·er·i·ci·um
ˌam-ə-ˈris(h)-ē-əm
: a radioactive metallic element produced by bombardment of plutonium with high-energy neutrons
—symbol Am
see Chemical Elements Table
More from Merriam-Webster on americium
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about americium
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