What does cobaltic mean?
Cobaltic is a specialist adjective in chemistry meaning “of or relating to cobalt,” especially to compounds in which cobalt has the +3 oxidation state. It is therefore more specific than either cobalt, a name for the element, or cobaltous, which denotes divalent cobalt in the +2 state. The word appears in formal laboratory and materials-science prose, often in terms such as cobaltic acid and cobaltic compounds. Writers should use it only when the oxidation-state distinction matters; for an unspecified substance that contains the metal, cobalt-containing is broader and more appropriate. The adjective has the same root as cobalt, a name borrowed from German Kobold, or “goblin,” because miners once believed mischievous spirits frustrated attempts to extract valuable metal from ore. The resulting terminology is compact and exact, but it belongs mainly to technical writing rather than ordinary conversation.
adjectiveOf or relating to cobalt. Specifically, it denotes cobalt compounds in which cobalt has the +3 oxidation state.
- Relating to cobalt, especially to compounds in which cobalt has the +3 oxidation state.
"Researchers compared the electronic structure of cobaltic compounds with that of related cobalt(II) complexes."
"The report identified the cobalt(III) complex as a cobaltic species."
"Cobalt(III) complexes provide familiar examples of cobaltic compounds."
The root of cobaltic is the same “goblin” that once made miners fear cobalt-rich ores.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does cobaltic come from?
The adjective was formed in English from cobalt plus the chemical suffix -ic, which in this family distinguishes the higher oxidation state from cobaltous. Cobalt itself was borrowed from German Kobold, derived from Middle High German kobolt, a miners’ term associated with goblins believed to interfere with silver extraction. The same root also underlies cobaltite and the English loan kobold.
How cobaltic is actually used
A specialist and usually formal term in chemistry. Use it only when the oxidation-state distinction matters; in general prose, cobalt-containing is broader and more appropriate.
Easily confused with cobaltic
Cobaltic denotes cobalt in the +3 oxidation state, whereas cobaltous denotes cobalt in the +2 oxidation state.
Cobalt is the chemical element and the source of the adjective; cobaltic specifically describes a chemical oxidation state or related compounds.