: an electric lamp in which the discharge takes place through mercury vapor
called alsomercury lamp
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the WebThe caretaker of one property in Melbourne Beach found hundreds of dead hatchlings piled beneath a single mercury-vapor lamp. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 13 June 2022 Ann’s father was Peter Cooper Hewitt, whose invention of the mercury-vapor lamp in 1901 earned him more than $1 million. Audrey Clare Farley, Town & Country, 20 Apr. 2021
Word History
First Known Use
1904, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
mercury-vapor lamp
noun
mer·cu·ry-va·por lamp -ˌvā-pər-
: an electric lamp in which the discharge takes place through mercury vapor and which has been used therapeutically as a source of ultraviolet radiation