oxygen

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oxygen

/ˈɒksɪd͡ʒən/ UK
/ˈɔksɪd͡ʒən/ Australia, British, Scotland
/ˈɑksɪd͡ʒən/ Atlantic Canada, US
/ˈɑksəd͡ʒən/ Atlantic Canada, US
/ˈɒksɪd͡ʒən/ Boston, Canada, Maine
/ˈɒksəd͡ʒən/ New Zealand
[ˈɔ̟ksəd͡ʒən] New Zealand

Where it comes from

Borrowed from French oxygène (originally in the form principe oxygène, a variant of principe oxigine ‘acidifying principle’, suggested by Lavoisier), from Ancient Greek ὀξύς (oxús, “sharp”) + γένος (génos, “birth”), referring to oxygen's supposed role in the formation of acids. By surface analysis, oxy- + -gen.

noun oxygens

countable, uncountable The chemical element (symbol O) with an atomic number of 8 and relative atomic mass of 15.9994. It is a colorless and odorless gas. Sometimes called elemental oxygen to distinguish it from molecular oxygen. Holonyms: dioxygen, O₂, oxygen (loose sense)
Similar: sourstuff, E948[packaging gas]]>
countable, uncountable Molecular oxygen (O₂), a colorless, odorless gas at room temperature. Meronym: oxygen (strict sense)
Similar: dioxygen, mul:O₂
countable, uncountable A mixture of oxygen and other gases, administered to a patient to help them breathe.
countable An atom of this element. Look first at any structure to see if there is a carbon with two oxygens attached. Hemiacetals, hemiketals, acetals, and ketals are all alike in that regard.
countable, figuratively, uncountable A condition or environment in which something can thrive. Silence is the oxygen of shame.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: o, hydrogen, peroxide, oxygenation, oxygenate, air, atmosphere, anoxia, valve, arm, tank, breathing, breath, wizard, heated, stat

Translations

Every language

noun chemical element

Español	oxígeno
한국어	산소 sanso
日本語	酸素 sanso
中文	氧 yǎng
हिन्दी	जारक jārak, ऑक्सीजन ŏksījan, प्राणवायु prāṇvāyu, आक्सीजन āksījan
Kiswahili	oksijeni
Français	oxygène
Deutsch	Sauerstoff, Oxygen, Oxygenium
Italiano	ossigeno
Ελληνικά	οξυγόνο oxygóno
Română	oxigen
Русский	кислоро́д kisloród
Tiếng Việt	ôxy, dưỡng khí
العربية	أُكْسِجِين ʔuksijīn
עברית	חַמְצָן khamtsan

noun molecular oxygen

한국어	산소 sanso
日本語	酸素 sanso
中文	氧氣 /氧气 yǎngqì
Deutsch	Sauerstoff
Ελληνικά	οξυγόνο oxygóno

noun atom of oxygen

한국어	산소원자 sansowonja
日本語	酸素 sanso
Deutsch	Sauerstoffatom
Ελληνικά	οξυγόνο oxygóno

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MLA

"oxygen." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/oxygen. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

oxygen. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/oxygen

Chicago

"oxygen." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/oxygen.

BibTeX

@misc{oxygen_2026,
  title = {oxygen},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/oxygen},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}