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acetonitrile

American

[as-i-toh-nahy-tril, -treel, uh-see-toh-] / ˌæs ɪ toʊˈnaɪ trɪl, -tril, əˌsi toʊ- /

noun

Chemistry.

a colorless, poisonous, water-soluble liquid, C 2 H 3 N, having an etherlike odor: used chiefly in organic synthesis and as a solvent.

Etymology

Origin of acetonitrile

First recorded in 1865–70; aceto- + nitrile

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

To perform the analysis, the researchers used acetonitrile to extract PAHs before purifying the samples with several combinations of sorbents.

From Science Daily • Dec. 1, 2025

Based on this theory, the researchers dispersed HB sheets into acetonitrile -- an organic solvent -- and applied a controlled voltage to the dispersion.

From Science Daily • Feb. 9, 2024

After that, he’ll add in other organic compounds of interest, like acetonitrile or benzene.

From New York Times • Dec. 28, 2021

A useful solvent that will dissolve salts as well as organic compounds is the compound acetonitrile, H3CCN.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019

Gel slices were cut into small pieces, dehydrated and rehydrated in acetonitrile and distilled H2O, respectively.

From Nature • Apr. 4, 2014

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023