thebaine

[ thee-buh-een, thi-bey-een, -in ]

nounChemistry.

a white, crystalline, slightly water-soluble, poisonous alkaloid, C19H21NO3, present in opium in small quantities, but having a strychninelike rather than a narcotic effect.

Origin of thebaine

1890–95; <New Latin thēba(ia) opium of Thebes, Egypt (alteration of Latin Thēbaea, feminine of Thēbaeus Theban) + -ine²

Words Nearby thebaine

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use thebaine in a sentence

Chloroform dissolves thebaine with difficulty out of both acid and alkaline solutions; petroleum ether extracts it from neither.
Poisons: Their Effects and Detection | Alexander Wynter Blyth

British Dictionary definitions for thebaine

thebaine

/ (ˈθiːbəˌiːn, θɪˈbeɪiːn, -aɪn) /

noun

a poisonous white crystalline alkaloid, found in opium but without opioid actions. Formula: C 19 H 21 NO 3: Also called: paramorphine

Origin of thebaine

C19: from New Latin thebaia opium of Thebes (with reference to Egypt as a chief source of opium) + -ine ²

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

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