caprolactam

American

[kap-roh-lak-tam] / ˌkæp roʊˈlæk tæm /

noun

a white, water-soluble compound, C 6 H 11 NO, used to produce a type of nylon.

caprolactam British

/ ˌkæprəʊˈlæktæm /

noun

a white crystalline cyclic imine used in the manufacture of nylon. Formula: C 5 H 10 NHCO

"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

Etymology

Origin of caprolactam

First recorded in 1940–45; capro(ic acid) ( def. ) + lactam

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