Etymology

benzylpenicillin

Today it means: The penicillin C₁₆H₁₈N₂O₄S that constitutes the principal or sole component of most commercial preparations and is used chiefly in the form of its stable salts (as the sodium salt C₁₆H₁₇N₂NaO₄S or potassium salt C₁₆H₁₇KN₂O₄S). Full definition →

English penicillin ← Latin pēnicillum ← Proto-Italic *peznis
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The story

  1. Arabicلُبَان (lubān)
  2. Proto-Indo-European*yew-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*yéwos
  4. Proto-Indo-Iranian*yáwas
  5. Sanskritयव (yava)bor.?
  6. Proto-Austronesian*zawa
  7. Proto-Malayo-Polynesian*zawader.?
  8. Old Javanesejawa
  9. Old JavaneseJawi
  10. Javaneseꦗꦮꦶ (jawi)
  11. Arabicجَاوَة (jāwa)
  12. Arabicـِيّ (-iyy)
  13. Arabicجَاوِيّ (jāwiyy)
  14. Arabicلُبَان جَاوِيّ (lubān jāwiyy)
  15. Catalanbenjuí
  16. Middle Frenchbenjoin
  17. Englishbenzoin
  18. Englishbenzo-
  19. Englishbenz-
  20. Proto-Indo-European*swel-der.?
  21. Ancient Greekῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
  22. Englishbenzyl
  23. Proto-Indo-European*pes-
  24. Proto-Indo-European*pes-ni-s
  25. Proto-Italic*peznis
  26. Latinpēnis
  27. Latinpēniculus
  28. Latinpēnicillum
  29. Englishpenicillin
  30. English todaybenzylpenicillin

From benzyl + penicillin.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.