alizarine

Variant of alizarin

alizarin definition

aliza·rin (ə liz′ə rin)

noun

a reddish-yellow crystalline compound, CH(CO)CH(OH), produced by oxidizing anthracene and used in dyeing wool, cotton, and silk and in the manufacture of dyestuffs: it was originally made from madder: sometimes called aliz′a·rine (-rin, -rēn)

Etymology: Ger < Fr & Sp alizari, dried madder root < Ar al ʿuṣāra, the juice < ʿaṣara, to press

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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