volatile

English

Etymology

From Middle French volatile, from Latin volātilis (“flying; swift; temporary; volatile”), from volō (“I fly”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈvɑl.ə.tl̩/, /ˈvɑl.əˌtaɪ.əl/, [ˈvɑ.lə.ɾɫ̩]

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈvɒl.əˌtaɪ.(ə)l/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

Adjective

volatile (comparative more volatile, superlative most volatile)

1. (physics) Evaporating or vaporizing readily under normal conditions.
2. (of a substance, informal) Explosive.
3. (of a price etc) Variable or erratic.
4. (of a person) Quick to become angry or violent.
5. Fickle.
6. Temporary or ephemeral.
7. (of a situation) Potentially violent.
8. (computing, of a variable) Having its associated memory immediately updated with any changes in value.
9. (computing, of memory) Whose content is lost when the computer is powered down
10. (obsolete) Passing through the air on wings, or by the buoyant force of the atmosphere; flying; having the power to fly.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:ephemeral

Derived terms

• volatility
• volatile memory

Translations

evaporating or vaporizing readily under normal conditions

• Afrikaans: vlugtig
• Catalan: volàtil
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 易揮發的, 易挥发的

• Czech: prchavý m, těkavý
• Dutch: vluchtig (nl), licht ontvlambaar
• Finnish: haihtuva (fi)
• French: volatil (fr)
• Georgian: აქროლადი (akroladi)
• German: volatil (de), flüchtig (de), verdunstend (de)
• Greek: πτητικός (el) m (ptitikós)
• Hebrew: נדיף‎ (he) m (nadif)
• Hungarian: illékony (hu), illó
• Irish: luaineach
• Italian: volatile (it)
• Japanese: 揮発性 (きはつせい, kihatsusei)
• Javanese: please add this translation if you can

• Korean: 휘발성의 (hwibalseong-ui)
• Malay: meruap
• Manx: so-ghaalagh
• Maori: tākohukohu
• Norwegian: flyktig
• Ossetian: сысгӕ (sysgæ)
• Polish: lotny (pl)
• Portuguese: volátil (pt)
• Romanian: volatil (ro) m
• Russian: лету́чий (ru) (letúčij)
• Slovak: prchavý m
• Spanish: volátil (es)
• Swedish: flyktig (sv)
• Thai: ลบเลือนได้ (lópleuandâi)
• Turkish: uçucu (tr)
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can

(informal) explosive

• Finnish: räjähdysherkkä
• Georgian: ფეთქებადი (petkebadi), ასაფეთქებელი (asapetkebeli)
• Greek: εκρηκτικός (el) m (ekriktikós)

• Italian: volatile (it)
• Japanese: 発破 (happa), (formal) 爆弾 (ja) (bakudan)

(of a price etc) variable or erratic

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 動蕩不定的, 动荡不定的

• Czech: nestálý
• Finnish: vaihteleva (fi), volatiili
• French: volatil (fr)
• Georgian: ცვალებადი (cvalebadi), არამდგრადი (aramdgradi), არასტაბილური (arasṭabiluri)

• German: schwankend (de), unbeständig (de), unstet (de)
• Greek: ευμετάβλητος (el) m (evmetávlitos), ρευστός (el) m (refstós)
• Hungarian: ingadozó
• Italian: instabile (it), incostante (it), variabile (it)
• Polish: niestabilny (pl), zmienny (pl)
• Portuguese: instável (pt)
• Russian: изме́нчивый (ru) (izménčivyj)
• Swedish: volatil

fickle

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 易變的, 易变的

• Czech: nestálý, přelétavý
• Finnish: häilyväinen

• Georgian: ფიცხი (picxi), ფხუკიანი (pxuḳiani), მერყევი (merq̇evi)
• German: unbeständig (de)
• Greek: ευμετάβλητος (el) m (evmetávlitos), επιπόλαιος (el) m (epipólaios), άστατος (el) m (ástatos)
• Italian: volubile (it)
• Russian: непостоя́нный (ru) (nepostojánnyj), изме́нчивый (ru) (izménčivyj)

quick to become angry

• Czech: náladový, prchlivý, vztahovačný (cs)
• Finnish: räjähdysherkkä
• Georgian: ფიცხი (picxi)

• German: aufbrausend (de), labil (de)
• Italian: suscettibile (it)
• Maori: pūkākā, kirikawa

temporary or ephemeral

• Czech: prchavý
• Dutch: tijdelijk (nl)
• Finnish: häilyväinen, lyhytkestoinen
• Georgian: დროებითი (droebiti), წარმავალი (c̣armavali)
• German: flüchtig (de)

• Greek: προσωρινός (el) m (prosorinós), εφήμερος (el) m (efímeros)
• Italian: temporaneo (it), effimero (it)
• Polish: ulotny (pl) m, nieuchwytny m
• Romanian: efemer (ro) m
• Russian: лету́чий (ru) (letúčij)

(of a situation) potentially violent

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 易怒的

• Czech: výbušný
• Finnish: epävakaa (fi)
• Georgian: მერყევი (merq̇evi), საშიში (sašiši)

• German: brisant (de)
• Greek: εκρηκτικός (el) m (ekriktikós)
• Italian: instabile (it)
• Japanese: 一触即発 (ja) (isshokusokuhatsu)
• Polish: napięty

(computing, of memory) whose content is lost when the computer is powered down

• Finnish: haihtuva (fi)
• French: volatil (fr)
• German: volatil (de)

• Greek: πτητική (el) (ptitikí) (μνήμη (el) (mními))
• Italian: volatile (it)
• Polish: ulotny (pl)
• Russian: энергозависимый (ru) (energozavisimyj)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} ekflama
• Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} mudah menguap, ^{(please verify)} mudah berubah, ^{(please verify)} rentan (id)

• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} volátil (es), ^{(please verify)} inestible

Noun

volatile (plural volatiles)

1. A chemical or compound that changes into a gas easily.

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French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /vɔ.la.til/

• Audio

  (file)

Adjective

volatile

1. feminine singular of volatil
2. Alternative spelling of volatil, as a masculine singular

Noun

volatile m (plural volatiles)

1. fowl, bird

Further reading

• “volatile” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

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German

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Adjective

volatile

1. inflection of volatil:
   1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
   2. strong nominative/accusative plural
   3. weak nominative all-gender singular
   4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

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Italian

Adjective

volatile (masculine and feminine plural volatili)

1. (chemistry, physics) volatile
2. flying

Synonyms

• (flying): volante

Noun

volatile m (plural volatili)

1. bird
2. fowl

Synonyms

• uccello

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Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /woˈlaː.ti.le/, [wɔˈɫ̪aː.t̪ɪ.lɛ]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /voˈla.ti.le/, [vɔˈlaː.t̪i.lɛ]

Adjective

volātile

1. nominative neuter singular of volātilis
2. accusative neuter singular of volātilis
3. vocative neuter singular of volātilis

References

• volatile in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)