radiocarbon dating

noun

: carbon dating
radiocarbon-date
ˌrā-dē-ō-ˈkär-bən-ˈdāt How to pronounce radiocarbon dating (audio)
transitive verb

Examples of radiocarbon dating in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Others, such as the seabird oil, may be older than radiocarbon dating can divulge. — Hannah Richter, Scientific American, 7 May 2026 Only a fraction of the items were examined in-depth or analyzed with radiocarbon dating. — Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 19 Sep. 2025 Dostal said radiocarbon dating of the wooden stoppers placed them roughly in the late 1700s. — CBS News, 4 June 2026 The radiocarbon dating results showed that the bow and arrow emerged in North America roughly 1,400 years ago. — ArsTechnica, 19 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for radiocarbon dating

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of radiocarbon dating was in 1950

Rhymes for radiocarbon dating

See All Rhymes for radiocarbon dating

Browse Nearby Words

radiocarbon
radiocarbon dating
radiocast
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Radiocarbon dating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/radiocarbon%20dating. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

radiocarbon dating

noun
: carbon dating

More from Merriam-Webster on radiocarbon dating

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about radiocarbon dating

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All