phthalic
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of phthalic
First recorded in 1855–60; (na)phthal(ene) + -ic
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.
Phthalein, thal′e-in, n. one of a very important class of dye-yielding materials formed by the union of phenols with the anhydride of phthalic acid.—adj.
From Project Gutenberg
The city is also a booming center of the chemical industry, prolific source of exotic effluents like phthalic anhydride and chlorinated phenolic compounds, which make the eyes water and smell like the medicines children swallow while holding their noses.
From Time Magazine Archive
![]()
Dr. Heinz M. Wuest, 76, supposedly retired but still active in his laboratory as a consultant to the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research, pointed out that the thalidomide molecule contains both a form of glutamic acid and a form of phthalic acid.
From Time Magazine Archive
![]()
But, said Wuest, in thalidomide the structural combination of glutamic and phthalic acids is most unusual.
From Time Magazine Archive
![]()
Phthalic Acid and the Phthaleïns, 145.
From Project Gutenberg
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.