enantioselective

adjective

that catalyzes the reaction of only one of a pair of enantiomers

OriginEnglish selective ← Ancient Greek ἐνᾰντῐ́ος (enăntĭ́os) ← Proto-Hellenic *antíos →
UncommonScrabble 21
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Meanings

adjectiveenantioselective (comparative more enantioselective, superlative most enantioselective)

comparative more enantioselective · superlative most enantioselective

  1. chemistrythat catalyzes the reaction of only one of a pair of enantiomers
    1 more example

    Aldrichimica Acta Volume 30 No 4 (pdf) from Sigma-Aldrich In combination with the two complementary methods that have been developed for asymmetric vinylcarbenoid cyclopropanations, the chemistry is applicable to the enantioselective synthesis of a wide variety of acyclic, cyclic, and polycyclic systems.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Ancient Greekἐν (en)
  3. Ancient Greekἐν- (en-)
  4. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ent-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*h₂entíos
  6. Proto-Hellenic*antíos
  7. Ancient Greekᾰ̓ντῐ́ος (ăntĭ́os)
  8. Ancient Greekἐνᾰντῐ́ος (enăntĭ́os)
  9. Englishenantio-
  10. Englishselective
  11. Englishenantioselective

From enantio- + selective.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

enantioselective. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/enantioselective

MLA

“enantioselective.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/enantioselective. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “enantioselective,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/enantioselective.

Source: enantioselective on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.