VALENCE

valence, valency

(noun) (chemistry) a property of atoms or radicals; their combining power given in terms of the number of hydrogen atoms (or the equivalent)

valence, valency

(noun) (biology) a relative capacity to unite or react or interact as with antigens or a biological substrate

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Proper noun

Valence

A city and commune, the capital of Drôme department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.

A commune, Charente department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France.

A town, the commune of Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Occitanie region in southern France.

Anagrams

• enclave

Etymology 1

Noun

valence (countable and uncountable, plural valences)

(chemistry, medicine, obsolete) An extract; a preparation, now especially one effective against a certain number of strains of a pathogen.

(chemistry) The combining capacity of an atom, radical or functional group determined by the number of electrons that it will lose, gain, or share when it combines with other atoms etc. [from 1884]

Synonym: valency

(chemistry) The number of binding sites of a molecule, such as an antibody or antigen.

(linguistics) The number of arguments that a verb can have, including its subject, ranging from zero (for the likes of "It rains") to three (for the likes of "He gives her a flower") or, less commonly, four.

Synonym: valency

(especially, psychology) A one-dimensional value assigned to an object, situation, or state, that can usually be positive or negative. [from 1935]

(sociology) Value.

Etymology 2

Noun

valence (plural valences)

Alternative spelling of valance

Anagrams

• enclave

Source: Wiktionary

Va"lence, n. Etym: [From L. valens, -entis, p. pr. of valere to have power, to be strong. See Valiant.] (Chem.)

Definition: The degree of combining power of an atom (or radical) as shown by the number of atoms of hydrogen (or of other monads, as chlorine, sodium, etc.) with which it will combine, or for which it can be substituted, or with which it can be compared; thus, an atom of hydrogen is a monad, and has a valence of one; the atoms of oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon are respectively dyads, triads, and tetrads, and have a valence respectively of two, three, and four.

Note: The valence of certain elements varies in different compounds. Valence in degree may extend as high as seven or eight, as in the cases of iodine and osmium respectively. The doctrine of valence has been of fundamental importance in distinguishing the equivalence from the atomic weight, and is an essential factor in explaining the chemical structures of compounds.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition