lithium

noun

lith·​i·​um ˈli-thē-əm 

1

: a chemical element of the alkali metal group that is the lightest metal known and that is used especially in alloys and glass, in mechanical lubricants, and in storage batteries see Chemical Elements Table

2

: a salt of lithium (such as lithium carbonate) used in psychiatric medicine

Examples of lithium in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Both are equipped with rooftop solar panels that generate energy for their hotel loads and 80 kW lithium batteries. —Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 8 Apr. 2024

Besides that, Bowlus has enough lithium batteries in one of its models that it can be used to charge an electric tow vehicle in an emergency. —Peter Valdes-Dapena, CNN, 31 Mar. 2024

Another issue: Because there wasn’t an electric car industry in the 1980s, there was no concern with lithium batteries, which are highly flammable. —Ken Roberts, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024

Want to extract lithium, a critical component of the batteries that run electric cars? —Michael Rosen, National Review, 28 Mar. 2024

And the high-profile Rhyolite Ridge mine, proposed for public lands in Nevada, would produce not only lithium but also boron, another key ingredient in the energy transition. —Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2024

The charging and discharging of these batteries relies on lithium ions moving from the battery’s electrodes to its electrolyte and back again, in the process releasing or absorbing electrons that produce the current flow. —Phillip W. Barth, IEEE Spectrum, 25 Mar. 2024

The company says the Big Sandy lithium is 99.8% pure, ideally suited for the production of lithium batteries for electronic devices and electric vehicles. —Trilce Estrada Olvera, The Arizona Republic, 25 Mar. 2024

The vessel was also carrying 56 containers of hazardous materials including corrosives, flammables and lithium ion batteries, Homendy said. —Lea Skene, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin (in German context) Lithium, taken as the metallic component of the alkali Lithion, probably based on Greek litheîon, neuter of litheîos "of stone," derivative of líthos "stone, rock," of obscure origin

Note: The alkali was discovered and analyzed, apparently in late 1817, by the Swedish chemist Johan August Arfwedson (1792-1841), who at the time was working in the Stockholm laboratory of J.J. berzelius. Berzelius reported on the discovery and named the components in letters written to the editors of learned publications, as J. S. C. Schweiggers' Journal für Chemie und Physik. Schweiggers published the letter, dated January 27, 1818, as "Ein neues mineralisches Alkali und ein Neues Metall" ("a new mineral alkali and a new metal") in vol. 21 of the journal (pp. 44-48). According to Berzelius, "we have named it [the new alkali] Lithion, thereby alluding to its first discovery in the mineral kingdom, as the two others [the alkali metals sodium and potassium] were first discovered in organic substances [literally, "organic nature"]. Its radical will then be named Lithium." ("Wir haben es Lithion genannt, um dadurch auf seine erste Entdeckung im Mineralreich anzuspielen, da die beiden anderen erst in der organischen Natur entdeckt wurden. Sein Radical wird dann Lithium genannt werden.")

First Known Use

1818, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing lithium

• lithium niobate
• lithium-ion battery
• lithium fluoride
• lithium carbonate

Kids Definition

lithium

noun

lith·​i·​um ˈlith-ē-əm 

: a soft silver-white element that is the lightest metal known see element

Medical Definition

lithium

noun

lith·​i·​um ˈlith-ē-əm 

1

: a soft silver-white element of the alkali metal group that is the lightest metal known and that is used in chemical synthesis and in storage batteries

—symbol Li see Chemical Elements Table

2

: a lithium salt and especially lithium carbonate used in psychiatric medicine