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Definition of uranium
: a silvery heavy radioactive polyvalent metallic element that is found especially in uraninite and exists naturally as a mixture of mostly nonfissionable isotopes — see element table
From the M-W Editors
Recent Examples of uranium from the Web
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In 2015 the Obama administration negotiated limits on uranium enrichment and, in exchange, helped lift certain sanctions placed against Iran.
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But the mines are open again, this time as a source of uranium, under Soviet supervision.
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Uranium is extracted from the earth same as fossil fuels.
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Stuxnet, the worm created by the United States and Israel to disrupt Iran's nuclear enrichment capability, was an advanced military-grade weapon designed to affect centrifuges that enrich uranium.
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The steady train of rubber-riding river runners spiked business in Naturita and Nucla, the West End’s struggling hamlets that once thrived on uranium mining.
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The three émigré Hungarians laid out the principle of the chain reaction, and then told Einstein of the interest the Germans were already showing in the use of uranium as a weapon.
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Visitors can see firsthand how operators at Peach Bottom harness the power of uranium to generate safe, reliable power, according to the announcement.
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Remember when Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Scooter Libby, anonymously leaked stories of nonexistent aluminum tubes for uranium enrichment to the press, and then Cheney used those very stories to justify invading Iraq?
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'uranium'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of uranium
New Latin, from Uranus
URANIUM Defined for English Language Learners
uranium
playDefinition of uranium for English Language Learners
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: a radioactive element that is used to make nuclear energy and nuclear weapons
URANIUM Defined for Kids
uranium
playDefinition of uranium for Students
: a radioactive metallic chemical element used as a source of atomic energy
Medical Dictionary
uranium
playMedical Definition of uranium
: a silvery heavy radioactive polyvalent metallic element that is found especially in pitchblende and uraninite and exists naturally as a mixture of three isotopes of mass number 234, 235, and 238 in the proportions of 0.006 percent, 0.71 percent, and 99.28 percent respectively—symbol U; see element table
Learn More about uranium
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See words that rhyme with uranium Spanish Central: Translation of uranium Nglish: Translation of uranium for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of uranium for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about uranium
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