noun
chloroform
KLO-ruh-fawm
Chloroform (noun) means a sweet-smelling, colourless liquid chemical once used as an anaesthetic and still used today as an industrial solvent. Example: “Chloroform was commonly used to put patients under before modern anaesthetics were developed.”
noun
1
A sweet-smelling, colourless liquid chemical once used as an anaesthetic and still used today as an industrial solvent.
"Chloroform was commonly used to put patients under before modern anaesthetics were developed."
verb
1
To knock someone unconscious using chloroform.
"In the old film, the villain chloroforms his victim with a soaked cloth."
"Geoffrey was first chloroformed, I think. The hand that picked Nipper up to dispose of him had certainly touched chloroform just before. Drugged; does that bring us nearer by taking us further away, I wonder?"
— Ernest Bramah, The Bravo of London (1934)
How to use chloroform
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA chemical once used to knock people out for surgery, now mainly an industrial solvent.
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Word forms
- Third person singular
- chloroforms
- Past tense
- chloroformed
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
_____ was commonly used to put patients under before modern anaesthetics were developed.
Etymology
Coined in French by chemist Jean-Baptiste Dumas in 1834, blending "chloride" and "formyl" (a chemical group from formic acid).
Class of 1834
chloroform joined the language around 1834.
See the full Class of 1834 →
Synonyms
View more →
trichloromethane
Frequently asked questions
What does “chloroform” mean?
The word “chloroform” means a sweet-smelling, colourless liquid chemical once used as an anaesthetic and still used today as an industrial solvent. In plain terms, a chemical once used to knock people out for surgery, now mainly an industrial solvent.
How do you pronounce “chloroform”?
“Chloroform” is pronounced KLO-ruh-fawm (/ˈklɒɹə(ʊ)ˌfɔː(ɹ)m/ in IPA).
How do you use “chloroform” in a sentence?
Here is “chloroform” used in a sentence: “Chloroform was commonly used to put patients under before modern anaesthetics were developed.”
What part of speech is “chloroform”?
Depending on how it is used, “chloroform” can be a noun and a verb.
Where does the word “chloroform” come from?
The word “chloroform” dates back to around 1834 and comes from French. Coined in French by chemist Jean-Baptiste Dumas in 1834, blending "chloride" and "formyl" (a chemical group from formic acid).
How many meanings does “chloroform” have?
“Chloroform” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a sweet-smelling, colourless liquid chemical once used as an anaesthetic and still used today as an industrial solvent.
