chromium
- 01 C1 Advanced
a hard, shiny grey metal that does not rust easily. It is often used to make steel stronger or to give car parts a shiny finish.
a hard, brittle, steely-grey transition metal (symbol Cr) valued for its high corrosion resistance and ability to take a high polish.
Simple“The factory uses chromium to make the steel parts more resistant to rust.”
In context“Chromium is an essential alloying element in stainless steel, providing the necessary oxidation resistance for industrial applications.”
UsageUncountable when referring to the element; countable when referring to specific isotopes or chemical samples.
Synonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
a free, open-source software project that provides the code for many popular web browsers, including Google Chrome.
an open-source web browser project developed by Google that serves as the codebase for several proprietary browsers.
Simple“Many developers prefer using Chromium because it is open-source and very fast.”
In context“The new browser is built on the Chromium engine, ensuring compatibility with the vast majority of existing web extensions.”
UsageProper noun; usually used without an article.
“The alloy, called GRCop-42, is made of three metals—copper, chromium and niobium.”
“The material, GRCop-42, is an alloy made from copper, chromium, and niobium.”
From New Latin, from French chrome (from Ancient Greek χρῶμα (khrôma, “color”)) + -ium. So called because of the striking colors of its compounds.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.