lewisite

American  

[loo-uh-sahyt] / ˈlu əˌsaɪt /

noun

1. a pale yellow, odorless compound, C 2 H 2 AsCl 3 , used as a blister gas in World War I.

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lewisite British  

/ ˈluːɪˌsaɪt /

noun

1. a colourless oily poisonous liquid with an odour resembling that of geraniums, having a powerful vesicant action and used as a war gas; 1-chloro-2-dichloroarsinoethene. Formula: ClCH:CHAsCl 2

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Etymology

Origin of lewisite

1920–25; named after Winford Lee Lewis (1878–1943), American chemist who developed it; -ite ¹

Example Sentences

One woman, a service trainee for the US Air Force, reported being ordered to run through a cloud of the organoarsenic compound lewisite in a “gas acquaintance procedure” during flight training in Houston, Texas.

From Nature • Jan. 10, 2017

Standard treatment for burns, whether caused by incendiary bombs, mustard gas or lewisite, is application of tannic-acid dressings.

From Time Magazine Archive

Because no one knew what to do with it, the U.S. supply of lewisite was dumped in the sea off Baltimore after the Armistice.

From Time Magazine Archive

Rev. Julius Arthur Nieuwland, father of Duprene and lewisite, was the most eulogized scientist at last week's A. C. S. gathering.

From Time Magazine Archive

The chemicals involved include nerve gas, mustard gas, lewisite and mycotoxins.

From Time Magazine Archive