What does polyethene mean?
Polyethene is a synthetic thermoplastic polymer formed by joining many molecules of ethene. It is lightweight, flexible, durable, moisture-resistant, and comparatively inexpensive to manufacture, which has led to its use in an enormous range of products. Common applications include plastic bags, packaging film, bottles, food containers, tubing, and agricultural coverings. Its properties can be modified by adding pigments, fillers, or other substances, producing materials with different degrees of rigidity and strength. In British English, polyethene is the standard technical term, while polythene is widely used in informal speech; in American English the usual name is polyethylene. Although polyethene is generally associated with disposable packaging, it can also be recycled and is used extensively in construction, agriculture, transportation, and household goods. The same material may therefore be called by several names depending on the speaker's region, register, and intended level of technical detail.
nounA tough, lightweight thermoplastic polymer made by polymerizing ethene, used in products such as bags, bottles, containers, films, and pipes.
- A synthetic polymer made from ethene units, valued for its low weight, flexibility, moisture resistance, and chemical resistance.
- Any article or material formed from this polymer, especially a plastic film or container.
"The packaging is made from recyclable polyethene rather than rigid plastic."
"Polyethene is widely used to make packaging and agricultural coverings."
"The engineers selected polyethene for the pipeline because it resists corrosion."
The plural is uncommon because polyethene is normally used as a mass noun. It may refer to distinct polymers based on ethene or to separate products made from the material.
"The laboratory compared the properties of several polyethenes under different conditions."
Often called the world's most widely used plastic, the material that gives polyethene its name is remarkably light, durable, and recyclable.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does polyethene come from?
The word combines the combining form poly-, meaning 'many' or 'much', with ethene, the systematic name for the gas C₂H₄ from which the polymer is produced. The shortening of polyethylene to polyethene is especially common in British technical and commercial usage. The related name polyethylene also reflects the same formation and ultimately the Greek roots of polymer and ethene.
How polyethene is actually used
In British English, polyethene is the formal or technical name and polythene is common in everyday use. US English normally uses polyethylene. As a material, the word is generally a mass noun and is not used with an article in the sense of a particular substance.
Easily confused with polyethene
Polyethene and polyethylene refer to the same polymer; polyethene is the more common form in British English, whereas polyethylene is standard in US English and is also widely used internationally.