phlogiston

noun

phlo·​gis·​ton flō-ˈji-stən 

: the hypothetical principle of fire regarded formerly as a material substance

Examples of phlogiston in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The theory explained why a heavy piece of wood was reduced to a light pile of ash: the substance had lost its phlogiston to the air. —Discover Magazine, 29 June 2010

Chemists also noticed that wood burning in a closed container didn't burn completely, and suggested that the air could only hold so much phlogiston. —Discover Magazine, 29 June 2010

Lavoisier didn’t think that Priestley was right about phlogiston, prompting a long-running battle. —Kat Eschner, Smithsonian, 25 Aug. 2017

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin, borrowed from Greek phlogistón, neuter of phlogistós "consumed by fire, burnt, flammable," verbal adjective of phlogízein "to burn (something), (middle voice) be on fire, blaze," derivative of phlóx, genitive phlogós "flame, flash (of lightning), blaze" — more at phlox

Note: The term phlogiston was introduced by the German physician and chemist Georg Ernst Stahl (1659-1734) in "Specimen Beccherianum," an appendix to a new edition of Physica Subterranea by the German physician and alchemist Johann Joachim Becher (1635-82). For quotations and details see the etymology in Oxford English Dictionary, third edition (online).

First Known Use

1733, in the meaning defined above