vanillin

American  

[vuh-nil-in, van-l-] / vəˈnɪl ɪn, ˈvæn l- /

Also vanilline

noun

Chemistry.

1. a white, crystalline, water-soluble, alcohol-soluble solid, C 8 H 8 O 3 , obtained by extraction from the vanilla bean or prepared synthetically: used chiefly as a flavoring agent and in perfumery.

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vanillin British  

/ ˈvænɪlɪn, vəˈnɪlɪn /

noun

1. a white crystalline aldehyde found in vanilla and many natural balsams and resins; 3-methoxy-4-hydroxybenzaldehyde. It is a by-product of paper manufacture and is used as a flavouring and in perfumes and pharmaceuticals. Formula: (CH 3 O)(OH)C 6 H 3 CHO

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Etymology

Origin of vanillin

First recorded in 1865–70; vanill(a) + -in ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vanillin

The team found that blocking TRPV4 with the antagonist prevented vanillin from producing these effects.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

Talbot and coauthor Shabnam Etemadi, a stem cell biologist and computational scientist at UCR, exposed human embryonic stem cells grown in laboratory dishes to several concentrations of vanillin.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

The title of the paper is "Nanomolar vanillin, an e-cigarette flavorant, appears to disrupt pluripotency and promote endodermal differentiation in human embryonic stem cells via TRPV4 activation."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

Other types of precision fermentation are already used in a variety of foods: Artificial flavors like vanillin, the vitamins added to cereal, and the rennet used in most dairy cheese are all precision-fermented.

From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2024

Thus, many essential oils and synthetic perfumes cause the soap to darken rapidly on keeping, e.g., clove oil, cassia oil, heliotropin, vanillin.

From The Handbook of Soap Manufacture by W. H. Simmons