for·mu·la
n, pl -las or -lae 1 a : a recipe or prescription giving method and proportions of ingredients for the preparation of some material (as a medicine) b : a milk mixture or substitute for feeding an infant typically consisting of prescribed proportions and forms of cow's milk, water, and sugar : also : a batch of this made up at one time to meet an infant's future requirements (as during a 24-hour period) 2 : a symbolic expression showing the composition or constitution of a chemical substance and consisting of symbols for the elements present and subscripts to indicate the relative or total number of atoms present in a molecule <the s for water, sulfuric acid, and ethyl alcohol are H2O, H2SO4, and C2H5OH respectively> - see EMPIRICAL FORMULA MOLECULAR FORMULA STRUCTURAL FORMULA .
Similar sounding terms: for·myl
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