Meanings
- uncountablemedicineThiopental.
1 more example
The anaesthetic technique that was used at PMH at that time was safe and simple – but limited. It consisted of an initial injection of thiopentone (pentothal) to put the person to sleep. (Many older people will remember having been asked to count to ten as they were given such an injection.) Thiopentone is a short-acting drug – not a good agent to keep the patient anaesthetized for very long – so a switch must be made to another anaesthetic.
2006, Ted Freeman, Doctor in Vanuatu, Suva, Fiji: Institute of Pacific Studies, University of the South Pacific, →ISBN, page 29
Synonyms & antonyms
nounbarbiturate that is a hygroscopic powder (trade name Pentothal) that is a strong barbiturate that acts rapidly; induces a relaxed state when injected as a general anesthetic
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From a trademark.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
pentothal. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pentothal
“pentothal.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pentothal. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pentothal,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pentothal.
Source: pentothal on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.