How to Use oxalic acid in a Sentence

oxalic acid

noun
  • To work, though, oxalic acid and bleach need to contact the wood fibers.
    — Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 7 Apr. 2023
  • Its sour taste comes from oxalic acid, which also gives rhubarb its tartness.
    — Susan Barocas, sun-sentinel.com, 17 July 2019
  • That would have meant using oxalic acid to remove an iron stain and a strong solvent to draw out an ink spill.
    — Clark Hodgin, New York Times, 2 May 2025
  • While there is no scent listed, the formula does contain oxalic acid, so keep it away from your eyes.
    — Maya Polton, Better Homes & Gardens, 24 Oct. 2022
  • This powdered cleaner contains oxalic acid that helps to remove rust.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 3 Mar. 2026
  • Both sorrel and spinach also contain small, edible amounts of oxalic acid.
    — Terri Milligan, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 13 Apr. 2018
  • The stalks are edible but the leaves contain high amounts of oxalic acid and are consequently toxic.
    — Bill St. John, The Denver Post, 13 June 2020
  • The oxalic acid reacts with alkaline buildups like calcium, lime, rust stains, and hard water stains like iron deposits, etc.
    — Alex Beggs, Bon Appétit, 10 Feb. 2023
  • The decline of oxalic acid is a common biomarker associated with sleep loss.
    — Jack Tamisiea, Scientific American, 25 Jan. 2024
  • However, his team found that oxalic acid may help gadolinium escape from the contrast agent and form nanoparticles.
    — Stephanie Brown, Verywell Health, 14 Apr. 2025
  • The main ingredient is oxalic acid, which is found naturally in certain fruits and vegetables and can leave surfaces shiny and clean.
    — Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 10 Mar. 2025
  • The main ingredient is oxalic acid, which is found naturally in certain fruits and vegetables and can leave surfaces shiny and clean.
    — Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 1 Mar. 2026
  • Bar Keepers Friend contains oxalic acid, which breaks down mineral deposits and other grime.
    — Washington Post, 15 July 2019
  • Doing so reduces oxalic acid, a compound that can inhibit the absorption of minerals.
    — Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
  • Boiling tomatoes may reduce oxalic acid levels, which can help people prone to kidney stones, while increasing lycopene content.
    — Cristina Mutchler, Verywell Health, 10 June 2026
  • Rhubarb is another excellent copper cleaner, thanks to its oxalic acid content, Dahmen says.
    — Katherine Martinelli, Popular Science, 24 Jan. 2020
  • Thymol, and other naturally occurring miticides like oxalic acid, formic acid and hops, are used in current treatments in the form of strips or trays that go inside the hive.
    — Michelle Cohan, CNN, 17 Nov. 2022
  • Bar Keepers Friend also includes oxalic acid as an active ingredient, which helps remove rust and stains.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 19 Sep. 2025
  • But the approval of the most efficacious methods for application of oxalic acid is tied up in bureaucratic delay.
    — Steven Savage, Forbes, 30 Apr. 2022
  • In the digestive system, oxalic acid can bind to minerals like calcium and inhibit their absorption.
    — Roxana Ehsani, Health, 21 May 2025
  • This powder is highly abrasive, using oxalic acid to remove rust, tarnish, mineral deposits, and stains from most materials.
    — Camryn Rabideau, Peoplemag, 14 July 2023
  • Using a product like Bar Keeper's Friend, which contains oxalic acid, a natural rust remover, can help bring your cookware back to life.
    — Kelly Vaughan, Martha Stewart, 23 June 2026
  • Bees can fall sick or die if concentrations of oxalic acid are too high, and other chemical miticides can cause reproductive problems in the pollinators.
    — Erik Stokstad, Science | AAAS, 4 June 2021
  • To compare this new treatment to oxalic acid, a common chemical used by small-scale beekeepers, the researchers then treated 30 colonies with either the acid or the fungus.
    — Erik Stokstad, Science | AAAS, 4 June 2021
  • Raw Potato Raw white potatoes contain oxalic acid, a common ingredient in most commercial rust removers.
    — Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 8 Feb. 2025
  • For stubborn stains, try using an oxalic acid cleaner following the manufacturer's instructions.
    — Jessica Bennett, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 July 2024
  • When energy is available, the microbes spit out oxalic acid, which precipitates as calcium oxalate crystals and causes further disruption.
    — Jeffrey Marlow, Discover Magazine, 27 Feb. 2016
  • The research team used test tube experiments and found that oxalic acid caused tiny amount of gadolinium to precipitate from the contrast agent and form nanoparticles, which infiltrated cells of different organs.
    — John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
  • Powdered cleaner Bar Keepers Friend contains oxalic acid, a compound that also occurs naturally in some fruits and vegetables.
    — Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Oct. 2025
  • Your typical can of BKF contains oxalic acid, and a few other abrasives and surfactants that soften grease and remove calcium, lime and other alkaline build-up.
    — Emily Farris, Bon Appétit, 3 Dec. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'oxalic acid.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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