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