caprolactam

[kap-roh-lak-tam]

noun

a white, water-soluble compound, C6H11NO, used to produce a type of nylon.

Origin of caprolactam

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

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

British Dictionary definitions for caprolactam

caprolactam

noun

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

Word Origin for caprolactam

C20: from capro (ic acid) + lactam

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