Main Entry: fluo·res·cence

Pronunciation: \-ˈre-s^ən(t)s\

Function: noun

Etymology: fluorspar + opalescence

Date: 1852

: luminescence that is caused by the absorption of radiation at one wavelength followed by nearly immediate reradiation usually at a different wavelength and that ceases almost at once when the incident radiation stops; also : the radiation emitted — compare phosphorescence