carbon tetrachloride

American  

noun

1. a colorless, nonflammable, vaporous, toxic liquid, CCl 4 , usually produced by the reaction of chlorine with carbon disulfide, methane, or other carbon-containing compounds: used mainly as a refrigerant, fire extinguisher, cleaning fluid, solvent, and insecticide.

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carbon tetrachloride British  

noun

1. a colourless volatile nonflammable sparingly soluble liquid made from chlorine and carbon disulphide; tetrachloromethane. It is used as a solvent, cleaning fluid, and insecticide. Formula: CCl 4

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carbon tetrachloride Scientific  

1. A colorless, nonflammable, poisonous liquid having a strong odor. It is used to make refrigerants, aerosol propellants, and pharmaceuticals. It is also used in petroleum refining and as a solvent. Until the mid-1960s, it was used as a cleaning fluid and in fire extinguishers. Chemical formula: CCl ₄ .

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Etymology

Origin of carbon tetrachloride

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

Similar patterns appeared in mice with liver fibrosis caused by carbon tetrachloride exposure.

From Science Daily • Jan. 6, 2026

The agency moved to ban asbestos last year and has also proposed banning methylene chloride, perchloroethylene and carbon tetrachloride.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 23, 2023

That includes the likely next up, perchloroethylene, a solvent used for cleaning and degreasing, and carbon tetrachloride, another solvent that is commonly used to produce other chemicals such as refrigerants.

From Washington Post • Apr. 20, 2023

The agency’s risk assessments for seven other chemicals — 1-bromopropane, carbon tetrachloride, C.I.

From New York Times • Mar. 16, 2023

A few liquids, one of which is carbon tetrachloride, react only very slowly with fluorine at the ordinary temperature.

From Scientific American Supplement, No. 832, December 12, 1891 by Various