dioxin

[ dahy-ok-sin ]

/ daɪˈɒk sɪn /

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noun Chemistry.

a general name for a family of chlorinated hydrocarbons, C12H4Cl4O2, typically used to refer to one isomer, TCDD, a by-product of pesticide manufacture: a toxic compound that is carcinogenic and teratogenic in certain animals.

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Also called TCDD

Compare Agent Orange.

Origin of dioxin

First recorded in 1965–70; di-¹ + ox- + -in²

Words nearby dioxin

diotic, Diouf, dioxan, dioxane, dioxide, dioxin, dip, DipAD, dip-and-scarp, DipChemEng, dip circle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use dioxin in a sentence

Even small amounts of dioxin, one of the most poisonous chemicals released by facilities, can cause developmental problems, damage the immune system and lead to cancer.
Poison in the Air|by Lylla Younes, Ava Kofman, Al Shaw and Lisa Song, with additional reporting by Maya Miller, photography by Kathleen Flynn for ProPublica|November 2, 2021|ProPublica
Her father had diabetes, which may have been triggered by dioxin, a chemical that attacks the pancreas.
Poison in the Air|by Lylla Younes, Ava Kofman, Al Shaw and Lisa Song, with additional reporting by Maya Miller, photography by Kathleen Flynn for ProPublica|November 2, 2021|ProPublica
A 2007 report found that the types of dioxin compounds in the blood of Mossville residents matched those emitted by local industrial facilities.
Poison in the Air|by Lylla Younes, Ava Kofman, Al Shaw and Lisa Song, with additional reporting by Maya Miller, photography by Kathleen Flynn for ProPublica|November 2, 2021|ProPublica
“Dioxin” is the dirtiest of dirty words and this designation, like the chemical itself, does not degrade.
Antibacterial Soap’s Deadly Secret|Kent Sepkowitz|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Unfortunately, the waste oil had a dioxin concentration 2,000 times higher than that in Agent Orange.
Antibacterial Soap’s Deadly Secret|Kent Sepkowitz|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is the connection of triclosan to dioxin that has appropriately raised the hackles of so many.
Antibacterial Soap’s Deadly Secret|Kent Sepkowitz|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Yushchenko had been poisoned with dioxin during the campaign, most likely by allies of Moscow.
Yulia Tymoshenko: She's No Angel|Christopher Dickey|February 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for dioxin

dioxin

/ (daɪˈɒksɪn) /

noun

any of a number of mostly poisonous chemical by-products of the manufacture of certain herbicides and bactericides, esp the extremely toxic 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin

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

Scientific definitions for dioxin

dioxin

[ dī-ŏk′sĭn ]

Any of several toxic hydrocarbons that occur as impurities in petroleum-derived herbicides, disinfectants, and other products. Dioxins are composed of two benzene rings connected by two oxygen atoms, and the most familiar kind, called TCDD, has two chlorine atoms attached to each benzene ring. TCDD was once thought to cause cancer and birth defects, but subsequent research showed it to have only mild toxic effects except at very high exposure levels.

Cultural definitions for dioxin

dioxin

[ (deye-ok-sin) ]

A group of pollutants created as by-products in many industrial processes. Dioxins accumulate in human tissue and affect human metabolism. They are carcinogens. Eliminating dioxins is an important goal of environmental policy.