Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Trivalent.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • In chem., having combining power equivalent to that of three univalent or monad atoms of hydrogen. Nitrogen is tervalent in ammonia (NH3). Also, but less correctly, trivalent.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective chemistry trivalent

Etymologies

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Examples

  • In this work he formulated the idea that, in the numerous compounds of tervalent nitrogen, the three valence bonds of the nitrogen atom are directed towards the three corners of a tetrahedron, the fourth corner of this being occupied by the nitrogen atom.

    Alfred Werner - Biography 1966

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