fluorescent

English

Etymology

From fluoresce +‎ -ent.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌflʊəˈɹɛsənt/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /flɔˈɹɛsənt/
• Homophone: florescent, in some pronunciations
• Rhymes: -ɛsənt

Adjective

fluorescent (comparative more fluorescent, superlative most fluorescent)

1. Of or relating to fluorescence.
2. Exhibiting or produced by fluorescence.

   The fluorescent plants shimmered in the darkness.

3. Emitting visible light as a result of the excitation of phosphors by ultraviolet photons produced by the passage of an electrical current through an inert gas infused with mercury.

   The quality of fluorescent lighting technology has improved dramatically in recent years.

   • 1960 July, “New Eastern Region diesel depot at Finsbury Park”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 422–423:

     The shed, a steel-framed structure with a single-span roof devoid of intermediate support, is exceptionally well-lit by continuous glazing on the roof and along much of the sides, while there is fluorescent roof lighting for night work.

   • 2007 March 1, Matthew L. Wald, “Room to Improve”, in w:The New York Times‎^[1], archived from the original on 3 June 2017:

     Rather than burning out as incandescent bulbs do, L.E.D.’s light output dims over tens of thousands of hours. L.E.D.’s are also more resistant to vibration than incandescents or screw-in fluorescent bulbs, and do not flicker or hum.

   • 2016 January 14, Jessica Hall, “Nanoengineers build 'microcannons' that fire light-up bullets filled with drugs”, in w:ExtremeTech‎^[2]:

     Then they backed the membrane with a gel matrix containing a perfluorocarbon (PFC) propellant and fluorescent "nanobullets" about a micron wide, and hit it with ultrasound.

4. Vivid, as if fluorescing; neon.

   Her shirt was fluorescent orange.

Derived terms

• autofluorescent
• biofluorescent
• chemifluorescent
• cytofluorescent
• epifluorescent
• fluorescent lamp
• fluorescently
• fluorescent tag
• fluorescent tube
• fluoro
• green fluorescent protein
• histofluorescent
• hyperfluorescent
• hypofluorescent
• immunofluorescent
• magnetofluorescent
• multifluorescent
• nanofluorescent
• neurofluorescent
• nonfluorescent
• polyfluorescent
• profluorescent
• pseudofluorescent
• stereofluorescent
• superfluorescent
• unfluorescent
• vacuum fluorescent display

Related terms

• fluorophore

Translations

of or relating to fluorescence

• Catalan: fluorescent (ca)
• Czech: fluorescenční, světélkující
• Danish: fluorescerende
• Finnish: fluoresenssi-, fluoresoiva
• French: fluorescent (fr)
• Galician: ^{(please verify)} fluorescent
• German: fluoreszierend (de), fluoreszent
• Indonesian: fluoresen (id)
• Italian: fluorescente (it)
• Japanese: 蛍光 (ja) (けいこう, keikō)
• Occitan: fluorescent (oc)
• Polish: fluorescencyjny (pl)
• Portuguese: fluorescente (pt)
• Russian: флуоресце́нтный (ru) (fluorescéntnyj), флюоресце́нтный (ru) (fljuorescéntnyj)
• Spanish: fluorescente
• Swedish: fluorescerande (sv)
• Tagalog: magilaw, gilawin
• Ukrainian: флуоресце́нтний (fluorescéntnyj), флюоресце́нтний (fljuorescéntnyj)

See also

• iridescent
• luminescent

Noun

fluorescent (plural fluorescents)

1. A fluorescent light.

   The fluorescents hummed day and night.

   • 2007 March 1, Matthew L. Wald, “Room to Improve”, in w:The New York Times‎^[3], archived from the original on 3 June 2017:

     Compact fluorescents are typically rated at 7,500 to 10,000 hours, and incandescents at about 1,500 hours.

See also

• incandescent

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [flu.u.ɾəˈsen]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [flu.o.ɾəˈsent]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [flu.o.ɾeˈsent]

Adjective

fluorescent m or f (masculine and feminine plural fluorescents)

1. fluorescent

Derived terms

• tub fluorescent

Related terms

• fluorescència

Further reading

• “fluorescent”, in w:Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, w:Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “fluorescent”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
• “fluorescent” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “fluorescent” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fly.ɔ.ʁɛ.sɑ̃/ ~ /fly.ɔ.ʁe.sɑ̃/

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

• Audio (Switzerland (Valais)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

Adjective

fluorescent (feminine fluorescente, masculine plural fluorescents, feminine plural fluorescentes)

1. fluorescent

Descendants

• → Romanian: fluorescent
• → Turkish: floresan

Further reading

• “fluorescent”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Occitan

Pronunciation

• Audio (Béarn):

  (file)

Adjective

fluorescent m (feminine singular fluorescenta, masculine plural fluorescents, feminine plural fluorescentas)

1. fluorescent

Related terms

• fluorescéncia

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French fluorescent.

Adjective

fluorescent m or n (feminine singular fluorescentă, masculine plural fluorescenți, feminine/neuter plural fluorescente)

1. fluorescent

Declension

Declension of fluorescent

		singular				plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine		masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	fluorescent		fluorescentă		fluorescenți	fluorescente
	definite	fluorescentul		fluorescenta		fluorescenții	fluorescentele
genitive- dative	indefinite	fluorescent		fluorescente		fluorescenți	fluorescente
	definite	fluorescentului		fluorescentei		fluorescenților	fluorescentelor