OK-si-jen
OXYGEN A colorless, odorless gas essential for life, making up about 21% of Earth's atmosphere.
17
Points in Scrabble
Base tile values • No multipliers applied
Oxygen is a chemical element with symbol O and atomic number 8. It's the third most abundant element in the universe and essential for most life on Earth. As a gas at room temperature, it makes up approximately 21% of Earth's atmosphere.
In biological systems, oxygen is crucial for cellular respiration, the process by which organisms convert nutrients into energy. The human brain alone consumes about 20% of the body's oxygen intake, highlighting its vital importance.
For word game enthusiasts, OXYGEN provides a valuable 6-letter word containing both X and Y, two high-scoring letters. Its common usage makes it familiar to most players, while its letter combination offers significant point potential.
Beyond breathing, oxygen has numerous applications: medical therapy, welding and cutting metals, rocket fuel oxidizer, and water treatment. Its discovery in the 1770s by Joseph Priestley and Carl Wilhelm Scheele revolutionized chemistry and our understanding of combustion and respiration.
The word 'oxygen' was coined in 1777 by French chemist Antoine Lavoisier from Greek roots: 'oxys' meaning 'acid' or 'sharp' and '-genes' meaning 'forming' or 'begetter.' Lavoisier mistakenly believed all acids contained oxygen, hence 'acid-former.' Despite this error, the name stuck.
Words with similar meaning
O2
Chemical formula
DIOXYGEN
Molecular form
AIR
Contains oxygen (informal)
Words with opposite meaning
CARBON DIOXIDE
Respiratory waste product
NITROGEN
Inert atmospheric gas
Plural Form
oxygens
Related Terms
Breathing apparatus
Lack of O2 (hypoxia)
Cryogenic form (LOX)
Total base points: 17 (Scrabble)
Vowels: 2 | Consonants: 4
Other high-scoring 6-letter words (Scrabble)
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"Mountaineers often carry oxygen tanks when climbing above 8,000 meters."
"Fish extract dissolved oxygen from water through their gills."
"OXYGEN scored impressively with both high-value letters on premium squares."
Oxygen symbolizes life itself in human consciousness. From 'oxygen bars' to oxygen therapy, it represents vitality and healing. The phrase 'oxygen to the economy' shows how deeply the element's life-giving properties have entered metaphorical language. Its discovery transformed our understanding of chemistry and life.
Practice unscrambling letters to find more high-scoring words like OXYGEN