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, ˌkækəˈdɪlɪk /

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

Derived Forms

• cacodylic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of cacodyl

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

Example Sentences

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

From The Firm of Girdlestone by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir

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 Hornung, E. W. (Ernest William)

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 Adams, Samuel Hopkins

The formula for cyanide of cacodyl is 'Me-2CY.'

From Average Jones by Adams, Samuel Hopkins

The knowledge of compound radicals received further increment at the hands of Robert W. Bunsen, the discoverer of the cacodyl compounds.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 1 "Châtelet" to "Chicago" by Various