heavy water

noun

1
: the compound D2O composed of deuterium and oxygen

called also deuterium oxide

2
: water enriched in deuterium

Examples of heavy water in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The team also oversaw the removal of heavy water, a substance used as a coolant in nuclear reactors, and irradiated fuel, nuclear fuel that can be reprocessed to extract materials for nuclear weapons. Eric Cheung, CNN, 1 Mar. 2025 To spot neutrinos colliding with atoms in the atmosphere, experiments have buried 1,000 tons of heavy water, woven cameras through a cubic kilometer of Antarctic ice, and planned to deploy 200,000 antennas. Matt Von Hippel, Ars Technica, 25 Nov. 2024 Notwithstanding its affirmations of Iranian compliance, the IAEA has acknowledged that Iran violated the JCPOA twice by exceeding its limit on heavy water, a key material for the production of a plutonium bomb. Tzvi Kahn, Foreign Affairs, 16 Feb. 2017 This geometric frustration is even worse in ices made of heavy water, whose hydrogen atoms have a neutron as well as a proton—a problem for scientists who use heavy ices in experiments to reveal ice crystals’ precise structures. Elise Cutts, Scientific American, 19 Mar. 2024 See All Example Sentences for heavy water

Word History

First Known Use

1933, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of heavy water was in 1933

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Cite this Entry

“Heavy water.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heavy%20water. Accessed 11 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

heavy water

noun
: water enriched in deuterium

Medical Definition

heavy water

noun
1
: the compound D2O composed of deuterium and oxygen

called also deuterium oxide

2
: water having a higher-than-usual proportion of deuterium among its hydrogen atoms

More from Merriam-Webster on heavy water

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