phlogistian
phlogistian noun: a believer in the existence of phlogiston.
Noun
phlogistian (plural phlogistians)
- A believer in the existence of phlogiston.
- It [air] was liable, according to the phlogistians, to vitiation, by the addition to it of phlogiston, […]1810, George Wilson, “General Sketch of Cavendish's Scientific Researches and Discoveries”, in The Life of the Honᵇˡᵉ Henry Cavendish, page 39
- Bryan Higgins was a "phlogistian", while William, correctly as it turned out, didn't believe in the concept.2007, Charles Mollan, “William Higgins (1763-1825)”, in It's Part of What We Are (Science and Irish Culture; 3), volume 1, Dublin: Royal Dublin Society, →ISBN, page 236
Adjective
phlogistian (not comparable)
- Of or pertaining to phlogiston or phlogiston theory.
- In Davy's time it was still necessary in considering any novel fact to keep the phlogistian hypothesis in view, and to demonstrate its inability to explain the new discoveries.1894 July 13, “Notices of Books”, in William Crookes, editor, The Chemical News and Journal of Physical Science, volume 70, number 1807
- Synonyms:
- phlogistic
Synonyms of phlogistian
Antonyms
Forms of phlogistian
| plural | phlogistians |
|---|
Origin of phlogistian
From phlogist(on) + -ian.
Questions about phlogistian
- What does phlogistian mean?
- Phlogistian means a believer in the existence of phlogiston.
- What part of speech is phlogistian?
- Phlogistian can be a noun or an adjective.
- What is the plural of phlogistian?
- The plural of phlogistian is phlogistians.
Words near phlogistian in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: phlogistian (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “phlogistian.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/phlogistian. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.