ion

Language: en

🇬🇧 /ˈaɪən/ 🇺🇸 /ˈaɪən/

📖 Definitions

  1. noun
    An atom or molecule that has gained or lost one or more electrons, giving it a positive or negative electric charge.

🔗 Details

Word forms

countable Plural: ions

Collocations

positive ionnegative ionion channelion exchangeion beamion trap

Derivatives

ionicionizeionizationionizerionosphereanioncation

Synonyms

charged particleelectrolyte

Commonly confused

iron
EN: 'Iron' is a metallic element (Fe); 'ion' is an electrically charged atom or molecule.
eon
EN: 'Eon' means an indefinitely long period of time; 'ion' is a charged particle.

Spelling tips

EN: Do not confuse 'ion' with 'iron' (the metal) or 'eon' (a vast period of time). The pronunciation differs: 'ion' is /ˈaɪ.ɒn/, while 'iron' is /ˈaɪ.ərn/.

💬 Examples

  1. Sodium loses an electron to become a positively charged ion.