strychnine

[strik-nin, -neen, -nahyn]

noun

Pharmacology. a colorless, crystalline poison, C21H22N2O2, obtained chiefly by extraction from the seeds of nux vomica, formerly used as a central nervous system stimulant.

an Indian tree, Strychnos nux-vomica, of the logania family, having small, yellowish-white flowers in clusters, berrylike fruit, and seeds that yield strychnine.

Also strych·ni·a

[strik-nee-uh] /ˈstrɪk ni ə/, strych·ni·na

[strik-ni-nuh] /ˈstrɪk nɪ nə/.

Origin of strychnine

1810–20; < French, equivalent to New Latin Strychn(os) genus name (< Greek strýchnos a kind of nightshade) + French -ine -ine²

Related formsstrych·nic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for strychnine

Historical Examples of strychnine

This was made by soaking wheat and oats in a solution of strychnine.
Old Rail Fence Corners
Various
If a tiger was raiding the cattle I would poison the "kill" with strychnine.
Ranching, Sport and Travel
Thomas Carson
"Strychnine, miss," readily answered the well-informed guide.
The Twelfth Hour
Ada Leverson
Strychnine is found in them in the proportion of ½–1½ and brucine ½%–1.4%.
The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines
T. H. Pardo de Tavera
No Spaniard knew how to cure hurts from urari, which seems to be strychnine.
Sir Walter Ralegh
William Stebbing

British Dictionary definitions for strychnine

strychnine

noun

a white crystalline very poisonous alkaloid, obtained from the plant nux vomica: formerly used in small quantities as a stimulant of the central nervous system and the appetite. Formula: C 21 H 22 O 2 N 2

Word Origin for strychnine

C19: via French from New Latin Strychnos, from Greek strukhnos nightshade

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

Word Origin and History for strychnine

powerful poisonous alkaloid, 1819, from French strychnine, from Modern Latin Strychnos, the genus name of the plant (nux vomica) from which the poison is obtained, from Greek strychnon, a kind of nightshade, of uncertain origin. The chemical was discovered 1818 by Pelletier and Caventou.

strychnine in Medicine

strychnine

[strĭk′nīn′, -nĭn, -nēn′]

n.

An extremely poisonous white crystalline alkaloid used as a poison for rodents and formerly used topically as a central nervous system stimulant.

strychnine in Science

strychnine

[strĭk′nīn′]

An extremely poisonous, white crystalline compound derived from the seeds of the nux vomica tree. Strychnine is an alkaloid and was formerly used in medicine to stimulate the nervous system. It is currently used as a rat poison. Chemical formula: C21H22O2N2.