toluene

[ tol-yoo-een ]

/ ˈtɒl yuˌin /

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noun Chemistry.

a colorless, water-insoluble, flammable liquid, C7H8, having a benzenelike odor, obtained chiefly from coal tar and petroleum: used as a solvent in the manufacture of benzoic acid, benzaldehyde, TNT, and other organic compounds.

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Also called methylbenzene, phenylmethane.

Origin of toluene

First recorded in 1870–75; tolu + -ene

Words nearby toluene

Tolstoy, Leo, Toltec, tolu, toluate, Toluca, toluene, toluic, toluic acid, toluidine, toluidine blue O, toluol

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use toluene in a sentence

A solution of hydrogen chloride in a poorly ionizing medium, like benzene or toluene, is an extremely poor conductor.
The Elements of Qualitative Chemical Analysis, vol. 1, parts 1 and 2.|Julius Stieglitz
Other dyes derived directly or indirectly from phenol will take us back once again to toluene.
Coal|Raphael Meldola
From benzene and toluene alone about forty distinct colouring-matters of the rosaniline group are sent into commerce.
Coal|Raphael Meldola
Already we see that benzene, toluene, solvent naphtha, and burning naphtha are separated from them.
Coal|Raphael Meldola

Now let us consider some of the transformations which benzene and toluene undergo in the hands of the manufacturing chemist.
Coal|Raphael Meldola

British Dictionary definitions for toluene

toluene

/ (ˈtɒljʊˌiːn) /

noun

a colourless volatile flammable liquid with an odour resembling that of benzene, obtained from petroleum and coal tar and used as a solvent and in the manufacture of many organic chemicals. Formula: C 6 H 5 CH 3

Word Origin for toluene

C19: from tolu + -ene, since it was previously obtained from tolu

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

Scientific definitions for toluene

toluene

[ tŏl′yōō-ēn′ ]

A clear, toxic, flammable liquid that is used in fuels, explosives, dyes, medicines, and many industrial chemicals. Toluene consists of a methyl group attached to benzene. Also called methylbenzene. Chemical formula: C7H8.