beryllium: Meaning and Definition of

be•ryl•li•um

1. a steel-gray, bivalent, hard, light, metallic element, the salts of which are sweet: used chiefly in copper alloys for better fatigue endurance, in springs, and in electrical contacts. Symbol: Be; at. wt.: 9.0122; at. no.: 4; sp. gr.: 1.8 at 20° C.