Iodide

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɑɪ.əˌdɑɪd/

Definitions

1. A chemical compound that includes iodine, frequently utilized in pharmaceuticals and as a dietary supplement
2. A salt formed from iodine, commonly applied in medical treatments and chemical processes
3. A type of chemical compound containing iodine, which is often used in medical applications and is important for proper nutrition in humans

Etymology: Iodide is a straightforward chemical coinage, and its history is largely the history of the element it is named after. Iodine was discovered in 1811 by the French chemist Bernard Courtois, who noticed a violet vapour rising from seaweed ash he was processing for saltpetre. The name comes from the Greek "iodes," meaning violet-coloured, which is itself built from "ion," the word for violet, and "-eides," meaning resembling. The chemical suffix "-ide," used to name compounds of an element with a more electronegative partner, was adopted into English from French in the nineteenth century, when chemists began standardising names for salts and binary compounds. Iodide therefore simply means a salt or compound of iodine, formed by adding "-ide" to the element's name.