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éther

ether

noun eh-TEHR Rare
Animals & Nature Environment

Origin: From Greek 'aither' (upper air, sky).

Also means

upper sky, heavens

Usage Note

Éther covers three related senses: the chemical solvent used as an anaesthetic, the poetic notion of the upper heavens in classical cosmology, and in older physics the hypothetical medium thought to carry light waves. In modern usage, the chemistry sense is most common (l'éther diéthylique), while the celestial sense appears mainly in literary prose.

Examples

"L'éther était utilisé comme anesthésique autrefois."

Natural Translation

Ether was used as an anaesthetic in the past.

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