English Explanatory Dictionary

chloroform

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A halogenated hydrocarbon, trichloromethane, CHCl₃; it is a volatile, sweet-smelling liquid, used extensively as a solvent and formerly as an anesthetic.
verb
  1. To treat, or to render unconscious, with chloroform.

Pronunciation

/ˈklɒɹə(ʊ)ˌfɔː(ɹ)m/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-chloroform.wav

Word forms

chloroform chloroforms chloroforming chloroformed

Etymology

Borrowed from French chloroforme, portmanteau of terchloride (tertiary chloride, trichloride) and formyle (CH, an obsolete radical of formic acid) by Jean-Baptiste Dumas, from 1834. By surface analysis, chloro- + -form.

Synonyms

trichloromethane Guthrie's sweet whiskey sweet whiskey

Related words

methylene chloride carbon tetrachloride fluoroform bromoform iodoform

Derived words

chlorodyne chloroformer chloroformism chloroformist chloroformize deuterochloroform methylchloroform methyl chloroform nitrochloroform prechloroform unchloroformed
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