solute
solute Lexical Profile
solute Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A substance that is dissolved in another substance (the solvent) to form a homogeneous solution, typically present in a smaller amount than the solvent.
"When you stir sugar into hot tea, the sugar acts as the solute and the water serves as the solvent."
• adjective
(Botany) Not adhering; loose or free, as certain plant parts.
"In this species of grass, the palea remains solute rather than fused to the caryopsis."
(Archaic) Dissolved in a fluid, or relaxed and free from restraint.
"The ancient treatise described how the mineral becomes solute when steeped in warm vinegar."
Word Nuance & Usage
In chemistry, 'solute' is easily confused with 'solvent' and 'solution': the solute is the minor component being dissolved (such as salt), the solvent is the medium doing the dissolving (such as water), and the resulting homogeneous mixture is the solution.
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late Middle English period from Latin solutus, the past participle of solvere ('to loosen, untie, or dissolve'), from which 'solve' and 'solution' also derive. The specific chemical noun sense was coined in the late 19th century.