latex
/ˈleɪtɛks
/noun (plural latexes or latices /ˈleɪtɪsiːz/) [mass noun]
1A milky fluid found in many plants, such as poppies and spurges, which exudes when the plant is cut and coagulates on exposure to the air. The latex of the rubber tree is the chief source of natural rubber.Natural latex is a milky fluid produced by the rubber tree and is used for manufacturing scores of every day items....
- Often, parents or caregivers are not aware of the risk of sensitivity to natural rubber latex.
- Tapping latex - the main source of local revenue in Nias - is her family's only way to earn a living.
1.1A synthetic product resembling latex used to make paints, coatings, etc.Humidity affects the drying time of all paints, but especially latexes....
- The water-based latexes of the invention provide stable emulsions containing a blend of waterborne polymer particles which undergo crosslinking upon film formation.
- The three latexes that are most commonly used in polymer-modified concrete are styrene-butadiene resin, acrylic latex, and vinyl acetate ethylene copolymer.
Origin
Mid 17th century (denoting various bodily fluids, especially the watery part of blood): from Latin, literally 'liquid, fluid'.