Word origins - 2ed. J. Ayto. 2005.
ptomaïne — [ ptɔmain ] n. f. • 1879; it. ptomaina (1875); du gr. ptôma « cadavre » ♦ Biochim. Substance aminée toxique se formant au cours de la putréfaction des protéines animales sous l effet de bactéries. Conserves avariées contenant des ptomaïnes. ●… … Encyclopédie Universelle
Ptomaine — (Leichenalkaloide), eine Reihe von organischen Basen, die sich bei der Fäulnis der Eiweißstoffe infolge der Wirkung besonderer Bakterien bilden und daher in verwesenden Leichenteilen angetroffen werden. Sie sind zum Teil äußerst giftig, zum Teil… … Lexikon der gesamten Technik
Ptomaine — Pto ma*ine, n. [From Gr. ? a dead body.] (Physiol. Chem.) One of a class of animal bases or alkaloids formed in the putrefaction of various kinds of albuminous matter, and closely related to the vegetable alkaloids; a cadaveric poison. The… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Ptomaïne — Ptomaïne, s. Leichenalkaloide … Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon
Ptomaine — Ptomaīne, s. Leichenalkaloide … Kleines Konversations-Lexikon
Ptomaine — [zu griechisch ptõma »Fall«, »Sturz«; »Leichnam«], Singular Ptomain das, s, die Leichengifte. … Universal-Lexikon
ptomaine — 1880, from It. ptomaina, coined by Prof. Francesco Selmi of Bologna, 1878, from Gk. ptoma corpse, lit. a falling, fallen thing, from piptein to fall (see SYMPTOM (Cf. symptom)). Notion is of poison produced in decaying matter. Incorrectly formed; … Etymology dictionary
ptomaine — denoting a kind of compound formerly associated with food poisoning, is pronounced toh mayn, with the initial p silent … Modern English usage
ptomaine — [tō′mān΄] n. [It ptomaina < Gr ptōma, corpse < piptein, to fall: see FEATHER] any of a class of alkaloid substances, some of which are poisonous, formed in decaying animal or vegetable matter by bacterial action on proteins … English World dictionary
ptomaine — [19] Ptomaine denotes etymologically ‘matter from a corpse’. It comes via French ptomaïne from Italian ptomaina, which was based on Greek ptōma ‘corpse’. This in turn was derived from the verb píptein ‘fall’, and originally meant literally… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
