toxin

toxin

See also: Toxin

English

Etymology

    From Latin toxicum, equivalent to toxi- +‎ -in.

    Pronunciation

    • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈtɒksɪn/
    • (General American) IPA(key): /ˈtɑksɪn/
    • Audio (US):(file)
    • Homophone: tocsin
    • Rhymes: -ɒksɪn

    Noun

    toxin (plural toxins)

    1. (strictly) A toxic substance, specifically a poison produced by the biological processes of organisms.
      Antonyms: antitoxin, antidote, antivenom
      • 2017 August 9, Mark Carnall, “Why do cephalopods produce ink? And what's ink made of, anyway?”, in The Guardian[1]:
        The blue-ringed octopus Hapalochlaena lunulata has tetrodotoxin, the deadly toxin it also releases in a bite, in their ink but the concentrations and effect in inking are not known.
    2. (loosely, usually proscribed) Synonym of toxicant: a toxic substance in a body requiring removal.

    Usage notes

    Hypernyms

    Hyponyms

    • venom (offensive animal toxins)

    Derived terms

    Translations

    Danish

    Noun

    toxin

    1. alternative form of toksin