formic acid

nounChemistry, Pharmacology.

a colorless, irritating, fuming, water-soluble liquid, CH2O2, originally obtained from ants and now manufactured synthetically, used in dyeing and tanning and in medicine chiefly as a counterirritant and astringent.

Origin of formic acid

First recorded in 1785–95

Words Nearby formic acid

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use formic acid in a sentence

Perhaps you don’t have the gene that allows you to smell formic acid, but it’s more likely that you’ve just never taken the time to sniff your little neighbors.
Why can some people smell ants? Here’s the answer to TikTok’s latest mystery. | Rachael Zisk | November 18, 2020 | Popular-Science
Salts, in which one atom of hydrogen in formic acid is replaced by a metal or other basic radical.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I | Arnold Cooley
formic acid was supposed to be an oxide of formyl; and chloroform, the terchloride of formyl.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I | Arnold Cooley
It manifests this peculiarity because of the volatile formic acid which it contains.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 514, November 7, 1885 | Various
formic acid was detected in the whole-milk cheese only at the five and one-half month stage.
The Book of Cheese | Charles Thom and Walter Warner Fisk

It also combines directly with potassium hydride to form potassium formate (see formic acid).
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 3 | Various

British Dictionary definitions for formic acid

formic acid

noun

a colourless corrosive liquid carboxylic acid found in some insects, esp ants, and many plants: used in dyeing textiles and the manufacture of insecticides and refrigerants. Formula: HCOOH: Systematic name: methanoic acid

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 formic acid

formic acid

[ fôr′mĭk ]

A colorless, caustic, fuming liquid that occurs naturally as the poison of ants and stinging nettles. It is used in making textiles and paper and in insecticides. Formic acid is the simplest organic acid, containing a carboxyl (COOH) group attached to a hydrogen atom. Chemical formula: CH2O2.

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