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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nīō'bēəm
/naɪˈoʊbiəm/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:N AY2 OW1 B IY0 AH0 M
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A chemical element (symbol Nb) with an atomic number of 41: a light grey, crystalline, ductile transition metal used in superconducting materials.
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
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
a soft grey ductile metallic element used in alloys; occurs in niobite; formerly called columbium
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Nb, atomic number 41
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: metallic element, metal
Narrower terms: columbium
History
Etymology
From Niobe + -ium, because of the element's affinity with tantalum, named after Niobe's father Tantalus.
Across languages
Translations
73 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
niobium
— chemical element
Albanian:
niob
— chemical element
Arabic:
نِيُوبِيُوم
(niyūbiyūm)
— chemical element
