cacodyl

American  

[kak-uh-dil] / ˈkæk ə dɪl /

adjective

1. containing the cacodyl group.

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noun

1. an oily, slightly water-soluble, poisonous liquid compound composed of two cacodyl groups, (CH3 ) 2 As−As(CH3 ) 2 , that has a vile, garliclike odor and that undergoes spontaneous combustion in dry air.

cacodyl British  

/ ˈkækədaɪl /

noun

1. an oily poisonous liquid with a strong garlic smell; tetramethyldiarsine. Formula: [(CH 3 ) 2 As] 2

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Other Word Forms

• cacodylic
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of cacodyl

1840–50; < Greek kakṓd ( ēs ) ill-smelling ( kak ( o )- caco- + -ōd- smell + -ēs adj. suffix) + -yl

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cacodyl

"What do you know about cacodyl?" was his impressive question.

From The Firm of Girdlestone by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

A spontaneously inflammable liquid, having a repulsive odor, and consisting of cacodyl and its oxidation products; Ð called also Cadel's fuming liquid.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Noah Webster

In the '40's, Bunsen, the German chemist, combined oxide of cacodyl with cyanogen, a radical of prussic acid, producing cyanide of cacodyl, or diniethyl arsine cyanide.

From Average Jones by Samuel Hopkins Adams

As he crossed the room some evil chance made him think of the gossip outside and of his allusion to the abstruse substance known as cacodyl.

From The Firm of Girdlestone by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

It is cyanide of cacodyl, and I have carried that small flask of it about with me for months.

From Raffles, Further Adventures of the Amateur Cracksman by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

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