fluorescentadj.
/flʊəˈrɛsnt/, /flɔːˈrɛsnt/, /flᵿˈrɛsnt/, U.S. /ˌflʊˈrɛs(ə)nt/, /flɔˈrɛs(ə)nt/ Of light or other radiation: arising from or of the nature of fluorescence; (of a substance or object) possessing the property of fluorescence; relating to or resulting from fluorescence. Also in extended use: vividly colourful.
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the world > matter > light > light emitted under particular conditions > [adjective] > fluorescent
fluorescent1853
fluorescing1860
fluoro1938
Day-Glo1982
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > intensity of light, luminosity > [adjective] > fluorescent
fluorescent1913
Day-Glo1949
1853 G. G. Stokes in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 143 390 In those cases in which the fluorescent light is yellow.
1855 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 145 211 (heading) Other fluorescent Organic Substances.
1868 H. B. Jones & H. Watts Fownes's Man. Elem. Chem. (ed. 10) 678 The aqueous solution of æsculin is highly fluorescent.
1913 Proc. Royal Soc. A. 88 24 Elements..which emit secondary fluorescent X-radiation when excited by a suitable beam of Röntgen rays.
1922 T. M. Lowry Inorg. Chem. xxxix. 750 Uranyl nitrate..crystallises in yellow fluorescent prisms.
1948 Life June 98/2 Autry put circus showmanship into the enterprise, dressed his performers in fluorescent suits.
1953 R. A. Heinlein Starman Jones ii. 24 He could make out the sweep of the freight highway leading southwest and could detect..its fluorescent traffic guide lines.
1977 Sci. Amer. (U.K. ed.) July 46/3 The antigens were first visualized by tagging their antibodies with a fluorescent dye that could be seen under ultraviolet radiation.
1999 D. Century Street Kingdom x. 356 A young Hispanic teenager in fluorescent Nikes sprints up the stairs ahead of us.
2007 US Fed News (Nexis) 24 Sept. The exhibit features many types of rocks as art pieces, including rock pictures, rocks that are native to Utah and fluorescent minerals.
Compounds
fluorescent lamp n. a lamp in which light is produced largely by fluorescence; esp. a tubular electric-discharge lamp containing mercury vapour, ultraviolet radiation from which causes the fluorescence of a coating of phosphor on the inside of the tube.
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the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > intensity of light, luminosity > [noun] > fluorescence > lighting
fluorescent light1853
fluorescent lamp1864
fluorescent lighting1936
the world > matter > light > artificial light > an artificial light > artificial light defined by light-source > electric light > [noun] > fluorescent lamp
fluorescent lamp1864
fluorescent light1966
1864 Mining & Smelting Mag. Oct. 228 A. Domas and C. Benoit, A fluorescent lamp for miners.
1907 T. A. Edison U.S. Patent 865,367 1/1 Fluorescent lamps made in accordance with this invention may be operated singly or may be worked together in series.
1938 Trans. Illum. Engin. Soc. 3 126/2 The tubular fluorescent lamp.
1993 Which? May 8/2 Correctly known as ‘compact fluorescent lamps’ or CFLs, these energy-saving light bulbs are scaled-down versions of fluorescent strip lamps.
2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 18 June b8/2 There is no such thing as an LED TV; they are simply LCD TVs that use LEDs, rather than fluorescent lamps, to light the screen.
fluorescent light n. (a) light arising from fluorescence; (b) = fluorescent lamp n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > intensity of light, luminosity > [noun] > fluorescence > lighting
fluorescent light1853
fluorescent lamp1864
fluorescent lighting1936
the world > matter > light > artificial light > an artificial light > artificial light defined by light-source > electric light > [noun] > fluorescent lamp
fluorescent lamp1864
fluorescent light1966
1853Fluorescent light [see main sense].
1899 W. Virginia School Jrnl. Feb. 28/2 Noted Inventions... A fluorescent light bulb, produced by both Edison and Tesla, giving light without heat.
1939 Pop. Sci. Monthly Dec. 194/1 H. J. Williams and J. A. Taylor, lighting engineers, demonstrated the new fluorescent lights for shops and industries.
1963 G. Troup Masers & Lasers (ed. 2) viii. 149 The fluorescent light emitted from the ends and from the sides was examined, using a grating spectrometer.
1966 D. F. Galouye Lost Perception xiv. 147 He regained consciousness in the glare of fluorescent lights strung along an acoustical tile ceiling.
2008 Sunday Mail (Queensland) (Nexis) 12 Oct. 23 If not for renovating we'd still live with '50s Formica, shagpile carpet, rice-paper curtains and fluorescent lights.
fluorescent lighting n. lighting that uses fluorescent lights.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > intensity of light, luminosity > [noun] > fluorescence > lighting
fluorescent light1853
fluorescent lamp1864
fluorescent lighting1936
the world > matter > light > artificial light > an artificial light > artificial light defined by light-source > electric light > [noun] > fluorescent lamp > lighting provided by
fluorescent lighting1936
1936 Trans. Illuminating Engin. Soc. 31 27 The former..is strongly blue-white fluorescent but is too unstable when exposed to light to be of any use other than in theatrical and novelty fluorescent lighting work.
1953 ‘M. Innes’ Christmas at Candleshoe i. 11 With a flicker and a ping a bar of fluorescent lighting has snapped on.
2005 W. Deverell April Fool iii. 26 He is fatalistic about the Gwendolyn development, which will include an efficient store, with chrome and fluorescent lighting.
fluorescent-lit adj. lit by fluorescent lighting.
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1941 Evening Independent (Massillon, Ohio) 7 Mar. 9/4 Gone are the days when you had to guess how your lipstick..would look under actual day conditions. Now all you have to do is look inside the Fluorescent lit case.
2002 M. Jacobson et al. Patterns of Home 99 Relentless light (imagine a fluorescent-lit classroom or a discount store) deprives a space of the meaning that comes with variety.
fluorescent screen n. an opaque or transparent screen coated on one side with a fluorescent material and used for displaying images produced when it is struck by X-rays, electrons, or other ionizing radiation.Such screens are used in cathode ray tubes to display the image.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > atomic nucleus > radioactivity > ionizing radiation > [noun] > screen for displaying images
fluorescent screen1856
society > communication > representation > a plastic or graphic representation > graphic representation > [noun] > by means of a computer > device or system for displaying images
fluorescent screen1856
microscreen1979
the world > matter > physics > atomic nucleus > radioactivity > X-rays > [noun] > screen displaying
fluorescent screen1901
intensifying screen1903
1856 W. A. Miller Elements Chem. II. xviii. 1146 1 represents the space occupied by the luminous spectrum on white paper; 2, the same spectrum thrown on a fluorescent screen, viz., turmeric paper, by which it is rendered visible almost to the extreme limit of chemical action.
1863 G. G. Stokes in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 152 615 On forming an image of the spark between a sharp and a flat electrode..and receiving it on a fluorescent screen, the flat electrode gave the brighter of the two images.
1901 F. H. Williams Roentgen Rays iii. 99 The X-ray examination by the photograph is better, as a rule, than that by the fluorescent screen for all parts of the body except the trunk.
2000 J. McFall tr. K. Wille Physics of Particle Accelerators x. 275 The beam position can simply be measured using a fluorescent screen..which is inserted into the beam line.
fluorescent tube n. a tube, typically of glass, in which fluorescence occurs producing light; esp. a tubular fluorescent lamp.
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the world > matter > light > artificial light > an artificial light > artificial light defined by light-source > electric light > [noun] > fluorescent lamp > part of
fluorescent tube1865
starter switch1900
starter1939
1865 Chem. News 17 Nov. 236/2 This contains a fluorescent tube of Geissler, which becomes luminous or fluorescent by the passage of electricity through it.
1898 Ophthalmic Rec. 7 648 It is said that arrangements are being made to light an entire block in New York by fluorescent tubes.
1938 Trans. Illum. Engin. Soc. 3 126/2 The low-pressure mercury vapour fluorescent tube..is singularly comparable with the sodium lamp.
2001 Pract. Fishkeeping Feb. 25/3 Specialised fluorescent tubes are easily available (far less messing around with northlights and warm whites).
Derivatives
fluoˈrescently adv. by fluorescence; with a fluorescent substance or fluorescent lights; (figurative) glaringly, luridly.
ΚΠ
1896 Electr. Engineer 25 Mar. 311/1 It [sc. the Röntgen ray] proceeds solely and alone from a substance fluorescently excited within a vacuum tube.
1941 Sci. News Let. 40 169/1 Artificial daylight illumination, fluorescently produced.
1991 N. Baker U & I ix. 174 The arrogance of engineering your appearance of humility was itself fluorescently vile.
1993 Cell 73 361/1 Sites of incorporation are visualized subsequently using fluorescently labeled antibodies.
2004 Daily Tel. 26 Jan. 15/1 The impression you come away with is of airless, overheated, fluorescently lit corridors, soulless wards.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2012; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1853