cfc
noun · adjective
Simple meaning
A fluorocarbon with chlorine.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
seeehfseeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈsiˈɛfˈsi
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
organic chemistry
A fluorocarbon with chlorine; formerly used as a refrigerant and as a propellant in aerosol cans
“The chlorine in CFCs causes depletion of atmospheric ozone.”
soccer
Initialism of Chelsea Football Club.
organic chemistry
Any of a class of organic compounds in which the hydrogen atoms of a hydrocarbon are replaced with those of chlorine and fluorine; formerly used as refrigerants and aerosol can propellants but withdrawn due to causing damage to the ozone layer.
adjective
Relating to, or affecting the heart, face and skin (or hair).
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Formality
- Technical
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A fluorocarbon with chlorine; formerly used as a refrigerant and as a propellant in aerosol cans
Used this way, cfc is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is a scientific use: it names something precisely within a field of study, so it appears in research and teaching more than in conversation.
“The chlorine in CFCs causes depletion of atmospheric ozone.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Science
- Academic writing
- Technical/specialist writing
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use cfc
- “The chlorine in CFCs causes depletion of atmospheric ozone.”noun
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.