chloral

American  

[klawr-uhl] / ˈklɔr əl /

noun

1. Also called trichloroacetaldehyde.  Also called trichloroacetic acid aldehyde.  a colorless, oily liquid, C 2 Cl 3 HO, having a pungent odor, usually derived by the chlorination of ethyl alcohol or of acetaldehyde and combining with water to form chloral hydrate.

2. Also called chloral hydrate.  Pharmacology. a white, crystalline solid, C 2 H 3 Cl 3 O 2 , formed by combining liquid chloral with water: used as a hypnotic.

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chloral British  

/ ˈklɔːrəl /

noun

1. a colourless oily liquid with a pungent odour, made from chlorine and acetaldehyde and used in preparing chloral hydrate and DDT; trichloroacetaldehyde

2. short for chloral hydrate

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Etymology

Origin of chloral

First recorded in 1825–35; chlor- ² + -al ³

Example Sentences

And the hospital had prescribed the maximum dose of chloral hydrate for the other child, allowing additional doses if needed.

From Science Magazine • Jan. 18, 2023

Luminal, developed in Germany during the last ten years, belongs to the same chemical group of drugs as chloral and veronal.

From Time Magazine Archive

In a wide-necked, glass-stoppered bottle were the crystals of chloral which he had long used in preference to the more usual liquid form.

From Jane Oglander by Lowndes, Marie Belloc

Croton chloral has received much praise from those who have used it; we have had no experience with it.

From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various

In spite of this, however, Dr. Ramskill, doubtless, continues to employ the bromide; and who would wish to be deprived of chloral, or any other drug, because of its abuse?

From Chapters in the History of the Insane in the British Isles by Tuke, Daniel Hack