selenium
noun
- mineral (as opposed to the chemical element)
- chemical element with atomic number of 34
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /sɪˈliːni.əm/ / /səˈliːni.əm/
noun
Etymology: From French sélénium, the name coined by Swedish chemist Jöns Jacob Berzelius in 1818 from Ancient Greek σελήνη (selḗnē, “moon”) in reference to original confusion with the similar element tellurium.
- A nonmetallic chemical element (symbol Se) with an atomic number of 34, used mainly in glassmaking and pigments and as a semiconductor.
“Pluck almost any cell from your body and it will have a million or more selenium atoms in it.”
- An atom of this element.