erbium
/ˈɜː.bɪ.əm/
Ɜː · bɪ · əm (3 syllables)
English
Noun
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Definition
A chemical element (symbol Er) with atomic number 68: a silvery-white metal, in nature always found in combination with other elements.
Etymology
Borrowed from New Latin erbium; itself from Swedish Ytterby (the name of the town where the element was first discovered) + -ium, coined by Swedish chemist and mineralogist Carl Gustaf Mosander in 1843. Doublet of terbium, ytterbium, and yttrium.
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