pentobarbital
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of pentobarbital
1930–35; pent- ( def. ) + -o- + barbital
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The memo also defends the use of lethal injection, calling the drug pentobarbital "the gold standard of lethal injection drugs".
From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026
The department said it has ordered the Bureau of Prisons to reinstate the execution protocol adopted during the first Trump administration, which relies on pentobarbital as the lethal agent.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026
The publication also quotes a medical expert who observed that pentobarbital, the single-drug barbiturate used in Black’s execution, “should cause rapid unconsciousness. It sounds like this did not occur.”
From Slate • Aug. 8, 2025
No matter their source and the procedures used to conduct them, many of the pentobarbital executions carried out by the federal and state governments have not gone smoothly.
From Salon • Jan. 21, 2025
When the vet injected the sodium pentobarbital, Neil fluttered her eyes, assumed a nap position, and died.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
