noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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məlĭb'dĭnəm
/məˈlɪbdɪnəm/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:M AH0 L IH1 B D IH0 N AH0 M
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A chemical element (symbol Mo) with an atomic number of 42: a silvery metal, not found as a free element, used in steel alloys.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A single atom of this element.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
a quadruple bond between molybdenums
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
a polyvalent metallic element that resembles chromium and tungsten in its properties; used to strengthen and harden steel
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Mo, atomic number 42
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: metallic element, metal
History
Etymology
From New Latin molybdaenum, from molybdaena (“any of various substances resembling lead”), from Ancient Greek μολύβδαινα (molúbdaina, “a plummet, piece of lead”), from μόλυβδος (mólubdos, “lead; graphite”), from an Anatolian word cognate with Lydian 𐤪𐤠𐤭𐤦𐤥𐤣𐤠 (mariwda, “dark”), from Proto-Indo-European *morkw-iyo-, from a root *morkw- (“dark”), cognate with English murk. Cf. Latin plumbum nigrum 'lead'. The suffix is + -um (“a chemical element”). Attested since the last quarter of 18th century.
Across languages
Translations
78 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
molibdeen
— chemical element
Albanian:
molibden
— chemical element
Arabic:
مُولِبْدِينُوم
(mūlibdīnūm)
— chemical element
Armenian:
մոլիբդեն
(molibden)
— chemical element
Asturian:
molibdenu
— chemical element
Azerbaijani:
مولیبدن
(mōlībden, mōlībdin)
— chemical element
Azerbaijani:
molibden
— chemical element
Basque:
molibdenoa
— chemical element
Belarusian:
малібдэ́н
(malibdén)
— chemical element
Breton:
molibden
— chemical element
Bulgarian:
моли́бден
(molíbden)
— chemical element
Catalan:
molibdè
— chemical element
Chinese Mandarin:
鉬 /钼
(mù)
— chemical element
Cornish:
molybdenom
— chemical element
Czech:
molybden
— chemical element
Danish:
molybdæn
— chemical element
Dutch:
molybdeen
— chemical element
Esperanto:
molibdeno
— chemical element
Estonian:
molübdeen
— chemical element
Faroese:
molybden
— chemical element
Finnish:
molybdeeni
— chemical element
French:
molybdène
— chemical element
West-Frisian:
molybdeen
— chemical element
Galician:
molibdeno
— chemical element
Georgian:
მოლიბდენი
(molibdeni)
— chemical element
German:
Molybdän
— chemical element
Greek:
μολυβδένιο
(molyvdénio)
— chemical element
Ancient Greek:
μολυβδαίνιον
(molubdaínion)
— chemical element
Hebrew:
מוליבדן
(molibdén)
— chemical element
Hindi:
संवर्णातु
(samvarṇātu)
— chemical element
Hungarian:
molibdén
— chemical element
Icelandic:
mólýbden
— chemical element
Interlingua:
molybdeno
— chemical element
Irish:
molaibdéineam
— chemical element
Italian:
molibdeno
— chemical element
Japanese:
モリブデン
(moribuden)
— chemical element
Kashubian:
molibdén
— chemical element
Kazakh:
молибден
(molibden)
— chemical element
Khmer:
ម៉ូលីបដែន
(mouliipdaen)
— chemical element
Korean:
몰리브덴
(mollibeuden)
— chemical element
Korean:
수연
(suyeon)
— chemical element
Korean:
휘수연정광
(hwisuyeonjeonggwang)
— chemical element
Korean:
몰리브데넘
(mollibeudeneom)
— chemical element
Latin:
molybdaenum
— chemical element
Latvian:
molibdens
— chemical element
Lithuanian:
molibdenas
— chemical element
Luxembourgish:
Molybdän
— chemical element
Macedonian:
молибде́н
(molibdén)
— chemical element
Malay:
molibdenum
— chemical element
Maltese:
molibdenu
— chemical element
Manx:
molybdenum
— chemical element
Mongolian:
молибден ᠮᠣᠯᠢᠪᠳᠡᠨ
(molibden)
— chemical element
Norwegian Bokmål:
molybden
— chemical element
Norwegian Nynorsk:
molybden
— chemical element
Occitan:
molibdèn
— chemical element
Polish:
molibden
— chemical element
Portuguese:
molibdénio
— chemical element
Portuguese:
molibdênio
— chemical element
Romanian:
molibden
— chemical element
Russian:
молибде́н
(molibdɛ́n)
— chemical element
Scottish Gaelic:
moilibdeanum
— chemical element
Serbo-Croatian:
мо̀либден
— chemical element
Serbo-Croatian:
mòlibden
— chemical element
Slovak:
molybdén
— chemical element
Slovene:
molibden
— chemical element
Spanish:
molibdeno
— chemical element
Swedish:
molybden
— chemical element
Tagalog:
molibdeno
— chemical element
Tajik:
молибден
(molibden)
— chemical element
Tamil:
போன்றீயம்
(pōṉṟīyam)
— chemical element
Tamil:
மாலிப்டினம்
(mālipṭiṉam)
— chemical element
Thai:
โมลิบดีนัม
(moo-líp-dii-nâm)
— chemical element
Turkish:
molibden
— chemical element
Ukrainian:
молібде́н
(molibdén)
— chemical element
