polywater

[ pol-ee-waw-ter, -wot-er ]

noun

, Chemistry.

1. a subtance mistakenly identified as a polymeric form of water, now known to be water containing ions from glass or quartz.

Word History and Origins

Origin of polywater¹

First recorded in 1965–70; poly(meric) + water

Example Sentences

In this view, cold fusion joins an insalubrious list that includes the N-rays of 1903, the polywater affair of the late 1960s and the memory of water episode of the late 1980s.

From Nature

They proposed that instead of the Van der Waals forces that normally draw water molecules gently together, polywater was composed of molecules locked in place by stronger chemical bonds, somehow catalyzed by the quartz capillary tubes.

From Slate

The spectrum of infrared light absorbed by polywater didn’t match any of those in a database of roughly 100,000 substances.

From Slate

Polywater examined under a microscope.

From Slate

He had discovered the disappointing truth: Polywater was just sweaty water.

From Slate