ammoniac

[ uh-moh-nee-ak ]

/ əˈmoʊ niˌæk /

noun

Also am·mo·ni·a·cum

[am-uh-nahy-uh-kuh m] /ˌæm əˈnaɪ ə kəm/. gum ammoniac.

adjective

Nearby words

ammonia clock, ammonia liquor, ammonia solution, ammonia water, ammonia-lyase, ammoniac, ammoniacal, ammoniate, ammoniated, ammonic, ammonification

Origin of ammoniac

1375–1425; late Middle English armoniac, ammoniak < Latin ammōniacum < Greek ammōniakón (neuter of ammōniakós of Ammon; see -i-, -ac), applied to a salt and a gum resin prepared near the Shrine of Ammon in Libya

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ammoniac

For myself, I generally prefer the colour given by ammoniac salt; it is artistical and sufficient for any purpose.
Notes and Queries, Number 178, March 26, 1853|Various
Sal ammoniac or ammonium nitrate when dissolved in water produce a much more marked cooling effect than does table salt.
Physics|Willis Eugene Tower
In like manner later physicians, when they wish to prescribe common salt, recommend in particular the ammoniac.
A History of Inventions, Discoveries, and Origins, Volume II (of 2)|Johann Beckman
Sal ammoniac, two ounces; rum, one pint; camphor, two drachms.
Burroughs' Encyclopaedia of Astounding Facts and Useful Information, 1889|Barkham Burroughs

I do not know,' he once wrote, 'what is precisely meant by "ammoniac manure."
The Earl of Mayo|William Wilson Hunter

British Dictionary definitions for ammoniac (1 of 2)

ammoniac

/ (əˈməʊnɪˌæk) /

adjective

a variant of ammoniacal

British Dictionary definitions for ammoniac (2 of 2)

ammoniac

/ (əˈməʊnɪˌæk) /

noun

a strong-smelling gum resin obtained from the stems of the N Asian umbelliferous plant Dorema ammoniacum and formerly used as an expectorant, stimulant, perfume, and in porcelain cementAlso called: gum ammoniac

Word Origin for ammoniac

C14: from Latin ammōniacum, from Greek ammōniakos belonging to Ammon (apparently the gum resin was extracted from plants found in Libya near the temple of Ammon)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for ammoniac

ammoniac

[ ə-mō′nē-ăk′ ]

n.

A strong-smelling gum resin from the stems of a plant of western Asia, formerly used in perfumery and in medicine as an expectorant and a stimulant.