Hydrargyrum

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /haɪˈdɹɑː(ɹ)d͡ʒɪɹəm/

Definitions

1. A chemical element represented by the symbol Hg that remains in liquid form at standard conditions and is notable for its use in various devices
2. A chemical element symbolized as Hg, commonly called mercury, is a silvery liquid metal used in thermometers and other scientific instruments
3. A metallic element known for existing as a liquid at room temperature and represented by the symbol Hg

Etymology: "Hydrargyrum" is simply the Latin name for mercury, the heavy liquid metal that was once called quicksilver. Its parts are Greek: "hýdōr" meaning water, and "argyros" meaning silver. Put together, the Greek compound "hydrargyros" meant "watery silver," a description of the metal's liquid shine. The Greek form survives as "hydrargyros" in classical writing, and the Latin borrowing "hydrargyrus" passed the name into European scientific vocabulary. The Latin ending "-um" is the neuter form that New Latin scholars used when they turned the name into a formal chemical term. English took it up directly, so the word is a learned coinage rather than a folk term. It is also the source of the chemical symbol Hg, the abbreviation of the Latin word.