benzoate of soda

7.2

A white salt used to stop food and drinks from going bad

noun
/ˈbɛnzoʊˌeɪt əv ˈsoʊdə/

Specialized

: benzoato de sodio

Some soft drinks contain benzoate of soda as a preservative to extend shelf life.

Examples

The ingredient label listed benzoate of soda among other additives.
Pharmaceutical preparations may use benzoate of soda for its antiseptic properties.
The recipe calls for benzoate of soda as a preservative.
Many products contain benzoate of soda for freshness.
Some soft drinks contain benzoate of soda as a preservative to extend shelf life.
The ingredient label listed benzoate of soda among other additives.
Pharmaceutical preparations may use benzoate of soda for its antiseptic properties.

Synonyms

sodium benzoate

vsbenzoate of soda

Specialized

1 4.3

A white salt added to food to stop it going bad

is an alternative name that uses a different word order

Surface Forms

benzoate of soda singular

benzoates of soda plural

Morphology

benzoate + of + soda

The phrase is compositionally built from 'benzoate' (a preservative compound) + 'of' + 'soda', signalling the benzoate salt associated with sodium; a learner who knows these constituents can infer it refers to sodium benzoate used as a preservative. Although somewhat technical, the 'X of Y' chemical-naming pattern is cross-linguistically common, so the meaning is derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Benzoate of soda comes from the way it is made: benzoate is the benzoic acid part and soda is an old word for sodium compounds like 'baking soda', so the name literally means the sodium salt of benzoic acid. That's why benzoate of soda is the name for the white salt used as a preservative.