carbon dating

noun

: the determination of the age of old material (such as an archaeological or paleontological specimen) by means of the content of carbon 14

carbon-date

ˈkär-bən-ˈdāt

transitive verb

Examples of carbon dating in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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Pigment samples from these works can also be used to help with identifying the age of the site using radio carbon dating. —

Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 11 July 2024 The carbon dating suggests that the initial construction could have taken place during the last Ice Age, in the Paleolithic era, and was later modified in the Holocene or Neolithic era. —

Discover Staff, Discover Magazine, 28 Feb. 2024 Using carbon dating, the researchers estimate that the pits are anywhere from 4,900 to 5,400 years old. —

Nathaniel Scharping, Discover Magazine, 23 May 2016 The generic equation for a bell curve is: The number e raised to an exponent appears in science and engineering equations for carbon dating, spring dampening, temperature variation, bacterial growth, and more. —

Kat Friedrich, Popular Mechanics, 16 Mar. 2023 See all Example Sentences for carbon dating

Word History

First Known Use

1951, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of carbon dating was in 1951

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Carbon dating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carbon%20dating. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.

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