isotope

iso·tope

UK/ˈaɪ.sə.təʊp/ US/ˈaɪ.sə.toʊp/ uncommon

noun

one of two or more atoms with the same atomic number but with different numbers of neutrons

Origin

From iso- (“equal”) + -tope (“place”), because the different isotopes of an element always occupy the same place in the periodic table. The term was coined by Scottish doctor Margaret Todd in 1909 and first used publicly on February 27, 1913 by English chemist Frederick Soddy.

Related words

Broader terms

atom

Narrower terms

radioisotope
deuterium

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.