Oxygen is a colorless gas in the air that people and most animals need to breathe, and that helps things burn.
Coined in French as *oxygène* by chemist Antoine Lavoisier from Greek *oxys* “sharp, acid” and *-genēs* “producer,” because he wrongly thought oxygen was necessary to make all acids. The name stayed even after the theory was corrected.
About one‑fifth of the air you breathe is oxygen, and your cells use it to turn food into energy, like tiny power plants. Plants flip the script: they release the oxygen we need while using the carbon dioxide we breathe out.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.