terephthalic acid Hear it!

terephthalic acid definition

ter·eph·thal·ic acid (ter′ef t̸hal′ik-)

a white crystalline powder, CH(COOH), produced by the oxidation of certain xylene hydrocarbons and used in making plastics, polyester fiber, etc.

Etymology: tere(bene) + phthalic acid

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

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.