Chromium
/ˈkroʊ.mi.əm/noun
A hard, lustrous metallic element used in alloys and plating.
Did you know?The name chromium comes from Greek khrōma, meaning “color,” because its compounds can appear in strikingly different colors, a detail that made early chemists think the element was almost magical.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
GR
χρῶμα (khrôma)
“color, complexion, hue”
1797
French
chrome
“chromium, especially in reference to its colored compounds”
1798
French
chromium
“the newly identified metallic element”
Early 19th Century
English
chromium
“the chemical element with atomic number 24”
Modern English
English
chromium
“a hard, lustrous metallic element used in alloys and plating”
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