WordLens

carbon-date

1 of 1verb
/ˈkɑrbənˌdeɪt/
Forms:carbon-dates,carbon-dating,carbon-dated,carbon-dated
1

to find out how old something is by measuring the amount of a certain type of carbon it has left

  • Scientists carbon-date ancient bones to learn when the person lived.
  • The team carbon-dated the wooden tool and found it was over 3,000 years old.
  • The archaeologists will carbon-date the pottery next week.
  • They are carbon-dating the cloth to check if it really came from that time period.
  • Experts often carbon-date fossils before displaying them in museums.