zein
1
9.9
A protein from corn used in foods and packaging
- noun
- /ziːn/
- Specialized
:
zeína
Synonyms
1
4.4
A protein from corn used in food and animal feed
focuses on industrial uses like coatings and packaging rather than mainly animal feed
Surface Forms
Morphology
zein = Zea (opaque) = zea + in
Formed from the Latin genus name Zea plus the protein-forming suffix '-in'; this is a specialised scientific coinage not transparently inferable by average learners.
Etymology
Zein comes from the plant name Zea, the name scientists use for 'corn', plus the ending -in that English adds to many proteins, as in casein. So zein simply means the 'protein of corn', which is why it is used in foods and in materials like coatings and packaging.