atom

Pronunciation: [ˈæɾm̩]

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: B2 — Upper-Intermediate

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun (physics and chemistry) the smallest component of an element having the chemical properties of the element
  2. noun (nontechnical usage) a tiny piece of anything

Etymology

From Middle English attome, from Middle French athome, from Latin atomus (“smallest particle”), from Ancient Greek ἄτομος (átomos, “indivisible”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + τέμνω (témnō, “to cut”, o-grade in τομ-) + -ος (-os). Atoms are so named because they were historically thought up as to be the smallest unit of matter, and thus indivisible. Doublet of atomus.

In classic literature

Semantic network

Broader (hypernyms)
substance
Narrower (hyponyms)
monad, isotope, carbon atom, hydrogen atom, free radical

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