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Glite Dictionary
aniline

aniline

1 9.6
A poisonous oily liquid used to make dyes, plastics, and medicines
  • noun
  • /ˈænəˌlin/
  • Specialized
translation icon : anilina
  • Water-based aniline paints gave way to house paints that did not run as much and were less likely to fade in the sun.
  • aniline paints

Examples

  • The laboratory technician carefully measured a quantity of aniline to prepare the dye solution.

  • Nowadays, aniline is only used by Isidoro Cruz of San Martin and some carvers from the extended Santiago family of La Union.

    Academic text (2000)

  • I am now going to add some aniline and potassium hydroxide.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Aniline dyes and colored inks are transparent to infrared.

    Red Dragon (2002)

  • In the late 1980s, carvers could be divided into those who used aniline and those who were switching to vinyl-acrylic house paints.

    Academic text (2000)

  • Most contemporary artisans in La Union specialize in modified versions of these simpler carvings, sometimes painted with aniline.

    Academic text (2000)

  • A visitor to his laboratory "was confronted with a symphony of colors... thousands upon thousands of glass bottles stood around, all filled with the brightest aniline dyes."

    Academic text (2010)

  • Elodia once used aniline paints, but switched to house paints around 1985 at the request of Henry Wangeman, a dealer who bought many of the family's pieces at that time.

    Academic text (2000)

  • In the production process, aniline is often combined with other chemicals to create vibrant colors for textiles.

  • When manufacturing plastics, the use of aniline is critical due to its unique chemical properties.

Synonyms

phenylamine
vsaniline
  • Specialized
1 9.9

An oily poisonous liquid used to make dyes, plastics, and medicines

is the common name rather than the systematic name
aminobenzine
vsaniline
  • Specialized
9.9

A poisonous oily liquid used to make dyes, plastics, and medicines

is a different formal term for the same industrial chemical
aniline oil
vsaniline
  • Specialized
9.9

A poisonous oily liquid used to make dyes, plastics, and medicines

is the standard chemical name without the descriptive oil label

Compounds

aniline dye
  • Specialized
6.6

A man-made dye made from aniline used to colour cloth

aniline oil
  • Specialized
9.9

A poisonous oily liquid used to make dyes, plastics, and medicines

Surface Forms

aniline singular
anilines plural

Morphology

aniline = anil (opaque) = anil + ine

Although analyzable as 'anil' + '-ine', the base 'anil' is rare in English and the chemical suffix '-ine' is not obvious to an average B1 learner, so the meaning is not derivable from the parts.

Etymology

The word aniline comes from the old word anil, which means 'indigo' or 'blue' in languages like Arabic and Spanish, and the chemical ending -ine was added. It was first made from the indigo dye, so the name reminds us that aniline is a chemical linked to dye making and other industrial uses.