/
ˈiːθə/
n.
-
(also diethyl ether)
a pleasant-smelling, volatile, highly flammable liquid used as an anaesthetic and as a solvent.
- Chemistry any organic compound with an oxygen atom linking two alkyl groups.
-
(also aether)
chiefly literary the clear sky; the upper regions of air beyond the clouds.
-
(also aether)
Physics, historical a substance formerly postulated to permeate all space and to transmit light.
Derivative
- etheric
/iːˈθɛrɪk, ˈiːθ(ə)rɪk/
adj.
Etymology
ME: from OFr., or via L. from Gk aithēr ‘upper air’, from the base of aithein ‘burn, shine’.