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Mercurial: meaning, definitions and examples

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mercurial

 

[ məˈkjʊərɪəl ]

Adjective
Context #1 | Adjective

emotional

subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind

Synonyms

capricious, fickle, unpredictable, volatile

Examples of usage

  • her mercurial temperament made it difficult to predict how she would react
  • his mercurial behavior often left his friends feeling confused
Context #2 | Adjective

chemistry

relating to, containing, or caused by the element mercury

Synonyms

mercurian, mercuric, mercurous

Examples of usage

  • the scientist conducted experiments with mercurial compounds
  • the mercurial thermometer measured the temperature accurately

Translations

Translations of the word "mercurial" in other languages:

🇵🇹 mercurial

🇮🇳 परिवर्तनीय

🇩🇪 quecksilbrig

🇮🇩 berubah-ubah

🇺🇦 меркуріальний

🇵🇱 rtęciowy

🇯🇵 水銀の

🇫🇷 mercuriel

🇪🇸 mercurial

🇹🇷 cıvalı

🇰🇷 수은의

🇸🇦 زئبقي

🇨🇿 rtuťový

🇸🇰 ortuťový

🇨🇳 汞的

🇸🇮 živosrebrni

🇮🇸 kvikasilfur

🇰🇿 сынапты

🇬🇪 ვერცხლისწყლის

🇦🇿 civalı

🇲🇽 mercurial

Etymology

The word 'mercurial' originated from the Latin word 'mercurialis', which is derived from 'Mercurius', the Roman god of commerce, travel, and luck. The term has been used since the 14th century to describe things related to the element mercury or to characterize someone with unpredictable behavior.

Word Frequency Rank

With rank #19,044, this word belongs to specialized vocabulary. While not common in everyday speech, it enriches your ability to express complex ideas.