What does chlorid mean?
"Chlorid" is an obsolete or non-standard variant spelling of "chloride," the term for a chemical compound in which chlorine combines directly with another element or group, such as sodium chloride (common table salt) or silver chloride. The form without the final -e appears chiefly in older scientific writing, particularly nineteenth-century American pharmacopoeias and chemistry texts, where shortened spellings were not uncommon. In modern usage the word has been entirely superseded by "chloride," which is the only correct form in current chemistry, medicine, and everyday language. Readers encountering "chlorid" today will almost certainly find it in historical documents, archival recipes, or digitized old textbooks rather than contemporary sources. Its interest lies largely as a linguistic fossil — a reminder that even precise scientific terminology has passed through periods of orthographic instability before settling into the standardized forms taught today.
nounA chiefly obsolete or non-standard variant of "chloride," denoting a chemical compound of chlorine with another element or radical. The standard modern form is "chloride."
- An obsolete or non-standard spelling of "chloride": a binary compound in which chlorine is combined with another element or radical.
"The old treatise listed sodium chlorid among the common salts of the laboratory."
"Mercurous chlorid, once written so in old pharmacopoeias, is known today as calomel."
"The assay recorded the precipitate as silver chlorid, following the nomenclature of the period."
Rarely encountered, since the word itself is obsolete; the standard plural is "chlorides."
"The chapter catalogued various chlorids then known to analytical chemistry."
Before chemists settled on "chloride," early textbooks wrote "chlorid" — one dropped letter separating modern chemistry from its 19th-century past.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of chlorid
The word derives from "chlorine," coined in the late eighteenth century from Greek "chlōros" meaning pale green, referring to the gas's characteristic color, combined with the suffix "-ide" used for binary compounds. The spelling "chlorid" simply reflects a variant practice of dropping the final -e, found in some nineteenth-century English-language scientific works. It shares its Greek root with related terms such as "chlorophyll" and "chloroplast," all ultimately tracing back to the same ancient Greek adjective for green.
How chlorid is actually used
"Chlorid" appears mainly in historical scientific and medical literature, especially American texts of the 19th century, where final -e was sometimes dropped. In any contemporary writing it should be replaced by "chloride."
Easily confused with chlorid
"Chloride" is the standard modern spelling and the only form used in current chemistry; "chlorid" is an older or non-standard variant.
A chlorite is a compound containing the ClO₂⁻ ion (or a green sheet silicate mineral), whereas a chlorid(e) contains chlorine bonded directly without oxygen.
A chlorate is a compound containing the ClO₃⁻ ion, distinct from a chlorid(e), which involves no oxygen.