chloroform

1 of 2

noun

chlo·​ro·​form ˈklȯr-ə-ˌfȯrm How to pronounce chloroform (audio)
: a colorless volatile heavy toxic liquid CHCl3 with an ether odor used especially as a solvent

chloroform

2 of 2

verb

chloroformed; chloroforming; chloroforms

transitive verb

: to treat with or as if with chloroform especially so as to produce anesthesia, insensibility, or death

Examples of chloroform in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Probes into Casey’s cell phone, computer and vehicle resulted in several damaging findings, including internet searches for chloroform and neck-breaking, as well as traces of chloroform and human decomposition in the trunk of her car. Lynsey Eidell, Peoplemag, 5 Jan. 2024 During a surgery to remove his tonsils, in the hopes of preventing further infections, Devon was given too much chloroform and soon died from an injury to his brain, Kolb said. Sheila McCann, The Salt Lake Tribune, 15 July 2023 During the clash, a cannonball smashed into Sickles’ right leg; doctors amputated the limb above the knee after administering a dose of chloroform. Nicholas Liu, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 July 2023 Other characters swirling around this world include Insomnia, Unexpected Noises and Sleep, who carries her targets off to slumberland by smothering them with a pillow or dousing them with chloroform. Ben Croll, Variety, 13 June 2023 The chemical giant Chemours, moving to cut emissions of a climate super-pollutant from its facility in the Rubbertown neighborhood, has asked city officials to issue a permit for new abatement equipment that could release chloroform and other hazardous air pollutants. From Usa Today Network and Wire Reports, USA TODAY, 24 Nov. 2021 One passage stuns you with rhetorical magnificence and the next puts you to sleep with metaphysical chloroform. Tom Bissell, Harper’s Magazine , 10 Apr. 2023 The competition, by comparison, was chloroform. oregonlive, 10 Jan. 2022 In one scene, where Piglet and Pooh chloroform Tosini in a hot tub before tying her up and running over her head with a car, the director deliberately chose to shackle the actor with a particular type of restraint. K.j. Yossman, Variety, 15 Feb. 2023
Verb
But elsewhere in the cosmos, life might be built from different chemicals that dissolve and assemble in some other liquid: perhaps methane, kerosene, or even chloroform. Kiona N. Smith, Discover Magazine, 26 June 2019 Donor insemination continued largely underground, sans chloroform, until the 1950s. Caitlin Harrington, Wired, 30 July 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chloroform.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

French chloroforme, from chlor- + formyle formyl; from its having been regarded as a trichloride of this group

First Known Use

Noun

1838, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1848, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of chloroform was in 1838

Dictionary Entries Near chloroform

Cite this Entry

“Chloroform.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chloroform. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

chloroform

1 of 2 noun
chlo·​ro·​form ˈklōr-ə-ˌfȯrm How to pronounce chloroform (audio)
ˈklȯr-
: a colorless heavy poisonous liquid that smells like ether and is used especially to dissolve other compounds

chloroform

2 of 2 verb
: to treat with chloroform especially so as to produce anesthesia or death

Medical Definition

chloroform

1 of 2 noun
chlo·​ro·​form ˈklōr-ə-ˌfȯrm, ˈklȯr- How to pronounce chloroform (audio)
: a colorless volatile heavy toxic liquid CHCl3 with an ether odor used especially as a solvent

called also trichloromethane

chloroform

2 of 2 transitive verb
: to treat with chloroform especially so as to produce anesthesia or death

More from Merriam-Webster on chloroform

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!