- a colourless or white crystalline compound used in gunpowders, pyrotechnics, fertilizers, and as a preservative for foods, esp as a curing salt for ham, sausages, etc (E252). Formula: KNO3Also called: saltpetre, nitre
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
potas′sium ni′trate, [Chem.]
- Chemistrya crystalline compound, KNO3, produced by nitrification in soil, and used in gunpowders, fertilizers, and preservatives;
saltpeter;
niter.
- 1880–85
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
potassium nitrate n
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