semicarbazide

S1E1M3I1C3A1R1B3A1Z10I1D2E1

noun

Any of a class or organic nitrogen compounds derived from the parent compound NH₂-NH-CO-NH₂; they react with aldehydes and ketones to form semicarbazones.

OriginEnglish carbazide ← Latin sēmi- ← Proto-Indo-European *sēmi →
Scrabble 29
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounsemicarbazide (plural semicarbazides)

plural semicarbazides

  1. chemistryAny of a class or organic nitrogen compounds derived from the parent compound NH₂-NH-CO-NH₂; they react with aldehydes and ketones to form semicarbazones.

    Azodicarbonamide partially breaks down on heating into semicarbazide, which has shown some indications of causing cancer (in animal at high doses).

    2014, Theodore Gray, photography by Nick Mann, Molecules: The Elements and the Architecture of Everything, 2018 Paperback Edition, page 224

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sem-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*sēmi
  3. Latinsēmi-
  4. Englishsemi-
  5. Englishcarbazide
  6. Englishsemicarbazide

From semi- + carbazide.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

semicarbazide. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/semicarbazide

MLA

“semicarbazide.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/semicarbazide. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “semicarbazide,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/semicarbazide.

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