ether
ether — noun
1. A clear liquid with a strong smell that burns very easily, used by doctors in th
A clear liquid with a strong smell that burns very easily, used by doctors in the past to make patients fall asleep and feel no pain during an operation.
Dr. Marco placed a cloth soaked in ether over the patient's nose before starting the surgery.
soaked in ether — method of administration
In the 1840s, ether let surgeons like Dr. Diego operate on patients who felt no pain at all.
The hospital stored ether in dark glass bottles because heat and sunlight could cause the liquid to catch fire.
Nurses in the 1800s kept ether away from any open flame in the operating room.
Lisa read that soldiers in the American Civil War received ether before having a leg amputated.
- anaesthetic
broader term for any substance that causes loss of feeling; ether is one specific type of anaesthetic
文法句型
ether + verb (as subject)
ether as object of preposition (under ether)
用法筆記
Now replaced by safer modern anaesthetics; you will mainly encounter this sense in historical descriptions of early surgery.
2. An invisible space through which radio waves, television signals, and other elec
An invisible space through which radio waves, television signals, and other electronic messages travel from one place to another — often used in the phrase 'through the ether' to describe broadcasting.
Radio waves carrying news and music travel through the ether to reach cars and homes across the country.
through the ether — route of broadcast transmission
Hannah imagined her own voice floating through the ether all the way to her grandmother's kitchen radio.
Early television pioneers believed they were sending live images through the ether directly into people's living rooms.
Long before the internet, voices and music already flew through the ether between continents.
文法句型
through the ether
across the ether
over the ether
用法筆記
This sense is slightly old-fashioned or poetic. In everyday English, 'the airwaves' or 'the air' is more common (e.g. 'the show is on the air').
3. A type of chemical compound in which two carbon-based molecular groups are conne
A type of chemical compound in which two carbon-based molecular groups are connected by a single oxygen atom; ethers are widely used as solvents and as ingredients in the production of other chemicals.
In the lab, Meera identified an ether by looking for an oxygen atom between two carbon chains.
identify an ether by oxygen between carbon chains
Diethyl ether, a common solvent, belongs to the class of organic compounds known as ethers.
The chemistry textbook explained that an ether forms when two alcohol molecules lose a water molecule between them.
Bao learned in lab that ether compounds smell quite sweet compared to other solvents.
文法句型
ether as a general class (uncountable)
an ether (countable compound)
用法筆記
Uncountable when talking about the class as a whole ('ether is a functional group'); countable when referring to individual compounds ('several ethers were tested').