phos·phate
n 1 a : a salt or ester of a phosphoric acid b : the trivalent anion PO43- derived from phosphoric acid H3PO4 2 : an organic compound of phosphoric acid in which the acid group is bound to nitrogen or a carboxyl group in a way that permits useful energy to be released (as in metabolism) .
Similar sounding terms: phos·phide phos·phite
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