Etymologically
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phosphate

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 15:05. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˈfɒsfeɪt/[1]
  • US: /ˈfɑsfeɪt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French phosphate,[2][3][4][5][6] a word that the OED finds in Guyton de Morveau in 1782;[2] Etymonline dates the French word to 1787.[4] It is formed from phosphore (“phosphorus”) and the chemical suffix -ate,[4][3][5][7] the same as English -ate.[8][9] Merriam-Webster derives it instead from phosphorique (“phosphoric”), in acide phosphorique (“phosphoric acid”).[10] The French name of the element comes from Latin phōsphorus (“the morning star”), from Ancient Greek φωσφόρος (phōsphóros, “light-bringing; the morning star”),[2][4] formed from φῶς (phôs, “light”) and -φόρος (-phóros, “bearing”).[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

In chemistry, a salt of phosphoric acid: 1788, in an English translation of Guyton de Morveau and others.[2][11][10] Barnhart and Etymonline give 1795.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

The word came into English with the new chemical names of the French chemists, from Guyton de Morveau's work.[2] Phosphates of calcium and other metals in minerals and in plants were named from 1849.[11][2] In North America, from 1885, a phosphate was also a soda-fountain drink of carbonated water, syrup and a little phosphoric acid, now chiefly historical.[2][8][9] The plural came to be used of chemical fertilizers containing phosphorus.[6][8] The verb, to treat with a phosphate, is recorded from 1897.[2][11]

Timeline

  • 1782 – French phosphate, in Guyton de Morveau.[2]
  • 1788 – a salt or ester of phosphoric acid.[2][11][10]
  • 1849 – a named phosphate mineral or compound.[11]
  • 1885 – North American: a carbonated soft drink.[2][11]
  • 1897 – verb, to treat with a phosphate.[2][11]

Meanings

Noun

  1. In chemistry, a salt or ester of a phosphoric acid, or the anion derived from it.[8][10][6][2]
  2. A fertilizer containing compounds of phosphorus, often in the plural.[8][6]
  3. (chiefly US, historical) A soda fountain drink of carbonated water, flavoured syrup and a little phosphoric acid.[8][2][9]

Verb

  1. To treat with a phosphate or with phosphoric acid, as in coating iron.[10][2]

Word family

  • phosphatic

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  7. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ a b c d e f The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  9. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  10. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  11. ^ a b c d e f g Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)