Etymology

ampicillin

A1M3P3I1C3I1L1L1I1N1

Today it means: A semisynthetic form of penicillin C₁₆H₁₉N₃O₄S that is effective against gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria and is used to treat infections of the urinary, respiratory, and intestinal tracts. Full definition →

English p(en)icillin ← Latin pēnicillum ← Proto-Italic *peznis
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The story

  1. Egyptianjmn
  2. Ancient GreekᾸ̓́μμων (Ắmmōn)
  3. LatinAmmōn
  4. Latinammoniacus
  5. Englishammonia
  6. Englishamine
  7. Englisham(ino)-
  8. Proto-Indo-European*pes-
  9. Proto-Indo-European*pes-ni-s
  10. Proto-Italic*peznis
  11. Latinpēnis
  12. Latinpēniculus
  13. Latinpēnicillum
  14. Englishp(en)icillin
  15. English todayampicillin

From am(ino)- + p(en)icillin.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.