Trisulphide

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A chemical compound whose molecule contains three sulphur atoms bonded together or to another element
2. A sulfur-based compound built around a chain or group of three sulphur atoms linked to other atoms
3. Any chemical substance classed as a sulphide in which three sulphur atoms are present in each molecule

Etymology: "Trisulphide" is a chemist's construction rather than a word with an old story. It combines the prefix "tri-", meaning three, with "sulphide," a compound of sulphur. In chemistry, a sulphide is a compound in which sulphur is bonded to another element or group, and a trisulphide contains three sulphur atoms linked together in a chain, a structure that appears in certain organic molecules and minerals. The prefix "tri-" comes from Greek "tri-" and Latin "tres," both meaning three, and English chemists adopted it in the 19th century to name compounds by counting their atoms. "Sulphide" was built the same way, from "sulphur" plus the chemical suffix "-ide," so the whole word is a systematic label rather than a term with a folk history.

Synonyms: trisulfide