potassium

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   the chemical element with symbol K and atomic number 19, a soft, silvery, highly reactive alkali metal that occurs naturally only in compounds

   Potassium reacts so vigorously with water that laboratories store the metal under oil.

2. 2
   noun

   potassium in food or the body, chiefly as K+ ions, considered as an essential dietary mineral and electrolyte

   Beans and potatoes provide substantial amounts of potassium.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Potassium was formed in the early 19th century from potass, a variant of potash. Potash was potassium carbonate produced by burning plant matter, soaking it, and evaporating the liquid in iron pots; the chemical symbol K comes from kali, an old name for a plant used in this process.

Coined by Humphry Davy in 1807 from potash + -ium after he isolated the metal from potash. Potash referred to alkaline salts obtained by leaching wood ashes and evaporating the solution in pots. The symbol K comes from Neo-Latin kalium.

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