Viscosifier

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A substance used to increase the thickness or resistance to flow of a liquid
2. An additive that makes fluids thicker by raising their internal friction
3. A chemical that enhances the viscosity of a liquid, making it less runny

Etymology: "Viscosifier" is a plain technical formation: the verb "viscosify," meaning to make something more viscous, with the agent suffix "-er" added to name the substance that does the making. Its base is the Latin "viscosus," "sticky" or "clammy," which goes back to "viscum," mistletoe, whose berries were used to make birdlime, a sticky substance for catching birds. English "viscous" carries that sense of stickiness, and "viscosify" follows the same pattern as words like "solidify" or "liquefy." The suffix does the real work here. Adding "-er" to a verb yields a noun for an agent, so a viscosifier is literally a thing that viscosifies, much as a "stiffener" stiffens. The word belongs mainly to industrial and technical vocabulary, where it names thickening agents used in drilling muds, paints, foods and cosmetics. Its dates and first recorded uses are not documented in the source, so none are given here.