benzopyrene

[ ben-zoh-pahy-reen, -pahy-reen ]

noun

, Chemistry.

1. a yellow, crystalline aromatic carcinogenic hydrocarbon, C 20 H 12 , consisting of five fused benzene rings, produced by incomplete combustion of organic material, as coal, petroleum, or tobacco.

Word History and Origins

Origin of benzopyrene¹

1925–30; benzo- or benz- + pyrene ²