rhodium

Where does the word "rhodium" come from? It comes from Greek rhodon, and was adopted directly into English (1803).

Rhodium’s story begins in Greek: rhodon meant “a rose.” A rose, since the element's compounds are often a distinctive rose color. It reached English by 1803 as rhodium. Coined by its discoverer for the element's rose-colored compounds. Today, rhodium means a rare, hard, silvery-white metallic element used in alloys and catalytic converters.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient rhodon "a rose", a rose, since the element's compounds are often a distinctive rose color.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1803 rhodium "a hard, silvery-white metallic element", coined by its discoverer for the element's rose-colored compounds.