- exhibiting or having the property of fluorescence
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
fluo•res•cent
(flŏŏ res′ənt, flô-, flō-),USA pronunciation adj.
n.
- Chemistry, Physicspossessing the property of fluorescence;
exhibiting fluorescence. - strikingly bright, vivid, or glowing:plastic toys in fluorescent colors.
n.
- Electricitya lighting fixture that utilizes a fluorescent lamp.
- fluor- + -escent 1850–55
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
fluorescent /ˌflʊəˈrɛsənt/ adj
fluo•res•cence /flʊˈrɛsəns, flɔ-/USA pronunciation
n. [uncountable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Chemistry, Physicsthe giving off of radiation, esp. of visible light, by a substance exposed to light or x-rays.
- Chemistry, Physicsthe radiation so produced.
fluo•res•cence
(flŏŏ res′əns, flô-, flō-),USA pronunciation n. [Physics, Chem.]
- Chemistry, Physicsthe emission of radiation, esp. of visible light, by a substance during exposure to external radiation, as light or x-rays. Cf. phosphorescence (def. 1).
- Chemistry, Physicsthe property possessed by a substance capable of such emission.
- Chemistry, Physicsthe radiation so produced.
- fluor(spar) + -escence, on the model of opalescence, in reference to the mineral's newly discovered property 1852
'fluorescent' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
cathode-ray tube
- Day-Glo
- discharge tube
- fluorescent lamp
- fluorite
- fluoroscope
- fluorspar
- highlighter
- krypton
- scheelite
- strip lighting
- sweep
- argon
- ballast
- broad
- bulb
- Canada balsam
- electron microscope
- electron-ray tube
- FACS
- field-emission microscope
- field-ion microscope
- fluorochrome
- grow light
- halo
- image tube
- immunofluorescence
- incandescent lamp
- kinescope
- lamp
- Raman effect
- troffer
- scanning line
- snooperscope
- spectrofluorimeter