containing nitrogen or a nitrogen compound: a nitrogenous fertilizer
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
ni•tro•gen /ˈnaɪtrədʒən/USA pronunciation
n. [uncountable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Chemistrya colorless, odorless, gaseous element that makes up about four-fifths of the earth's atmosphere and is found in animal and vegetable tissues.
ni•trog•e•nous
(nī troj′ə nəs),USA pronunciation adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- containing nitrogen.
- nitrogen + -ous 1830–40
ni•tro•gen
(nī′trə jən),USA pronunciation n. [Chem.]
- a colorless, odorless, gaseous element that constitutes about four-fifths of the volume of the atmosphere and is present in combined form in animal and vegetable tissues, esp. in proteins: used chiefly in the manufacture of ammonia, nitric acid, cyanide, explosives, fertilizer, dyes, as a cooling agent, etc. Symbol: N;
at. wt.: 14.0067;
at. no.: 7;
density: 1.2506 g/l at 0°C and 760 mm pressure.
- French nitrogène. See nitro-, -gen
- 1785–95
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