arsenical

American  

[ahr-sen-i-kuhl] / ɑrˈsɛn ɪ kəl /

adjective

1. containing or relating to arsenic.

---

noun

1. any of a group of pesticides, drugs, or other compounds containing arsenic.

arsenical British  

/ ɑːˈsɛnɪkəl /

adjective

1. of or containing arsenic

---

noun

1. a drug or insecticide containing arsenic

Other Word Forms

• nonarsenical adjective

Etymology

Origin of arsenical

First recorded in 1595–1605; arsenic + -al ¹

Example Sentences

Arsenic-contaminated environments have also caused sickness and death among horses, cows, goats, pigs, deer, fishes, and bees, but arsenical sprays and dusts are still widely applied.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 3, 2017

“Anyone who has watched the dusters and sprayers of arsenical insecticides at work must have been impressed by the almost supreme carelessness with which these poisonous substances are dispensed.”

From The New Yorker • Jan. 3, 2017

As pests evolved resistance to arsenical pesticides and as chemical companies supplanted arsenicals with newer products, arsenicals fell out of favor.

From Salon • Oct. 8, 2012

Only then did the government begin canceling some of the registrations of arsenical pesticides.

From Salon • Oct. 8, 2012

In Cordoba Province in Argentina, however, chronic arsenic poisoning, accompanied by arsenical skin cancers, is endemic because of the contamination of drinking water derived from rock formations containing arsenic.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson