strychnine

American  

[strik-nin, -neen, -nahyn] / ˈstrɪk nɪn, -nin, -naɪn /

Also strychnia

noun

1. Pharmacology. a colorless, crystalline poison, C 2 1 H 2 2 N 2 O 2 , obtained chiefly by extraction from the seeds of nux vomica, formerly used as a central nervous system stimulant.

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

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strychnine British  

/ ˈstrɪkniːn /

noun

1. 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

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strychnine Scientific  

/ strĭk′nīn′ /

1. 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: C ₂₁ H ₂₂ O ₂ N ₂ .

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Other Word Forms

• strychnic adjective

Etymology

Origin of strychnine

1810–20; < French, equivalent to New Latin Strychn ( os ) genus name (< Greek strýchnos a kind of nightshade) + French -ine -ine ²

Example Sentences

Condors vanished from the state’s North Coast after the arrival of European settlers, who killed other animals with lead bullets and strychnine — poisoning the raptors that feed on carrion.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026

As Young described her Ph.D. work illuminating how the poison strychnine exerts its effects at receptors for the neurotransmitter glycine in the spinal cord, Greenamyre became entranced.

From Science Magazine • May 4, 2023

And because strychnine doesn’t break down in animal tissue, it can also ripple through the food chain when a bird of prey or even a domestic dog consumes a poisoned mouse or mole.

From The Guardian • Mar. 8, 2017

That subversive streak has returned in these strychnine times.

From Washington Post • Nov. 15, 2016

A sample of tissue could be extracted from the body and tested for the presence of an array of toxic substances—from strychnine to arsenic.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann