Vitriol

In chemistry, vitriol is an archaic name for a sulfate, and vitriol names have the obvious meaning: for example, vitriol of lead is lead sulfate, and so on. The word vitriol comes from the Latin word 'vitriolum' for 'glassy', as crystals of several metallic sulfates resemble pieces of colored glass. In chemistry, vitriol is an archaic name for a sulfate, and vitriol names have the obvious meaning: for example, vitriol of lead is lead sulfate, and so on. The word vitriol comes from the Latin word 'vitriolum' for 'glassy', as crystals of several metallic sulfates resemble pieces of colored glass. Vitriol with no further qualification often means sulfuric acid.