benzene
Plural: benzenes
Noun
- A volatile, flammable, aromatic liquid hydrocarbon used as a solvent.
- a colorless liquid hydrocarbon; highly inflammable; carcinogenic; the simplest of the aromatic compounds
- An aromatic hydrocarbon of formula C₆H₆ whose structure consists of a ring of alternate single and double bonds.
- Sometimes used in place of the phenyl group.
Examples
- He strategically placed BENZENE, hoping its high-value letters would explode his score.
Origin / Etymology
A technical term in chemistry, adopted in English in 1835 as benzine (benzene from 1872), from German Benzin, which was coined in 1833 by Eilhardt Mitscherlich based on Benzoesäure (“benzoic acid”), plus the technical ending -ene (German -in) denoting hydrocarbons. The adjective benzoic is in turn from benzoin, originally a term for a balsamic resin from Middle French benjoin, from Spanish benjuí, Portuguese beijoim, Italian benzoi, probably, from Arabic لُبَان جَاوِيّ (lubān jāwiyy, “Javanese frankincense”).
Not related to German Benz (surname).
Scrabble Score: 18
benzene: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordbenzene: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
benzene: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary
Words With Friends Score: 21
benzene: valid Words With Friends Word