Aqua Regia Definition
rējē-ə, rējə
noun
A corrosive, fuming, volatile mixture of hydrochloric and nitric acids, used for testing metals and dissolving platinum and gold.
American Heritage
A mixture of nitric and hydrochloric acids.
Webster's New World
(obsolete, inorganic chemistry) A mixture of three parts concentrated hydrochloric acid to one part concentrated nitric acid.
Wiktionary
Synonyms:
- nitrohydrochloric acid
Origin of Aqua Regia
New Latin aqua rēgia Latin aqua water Latin rēgia feminine of rēgius royal (because it dissolves gold, the “royal metal”)
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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Latin aqua regia, royal water, so named because it is one of the few solvents capable of dissolving noble metals.
From Wiktionary
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