tetramethyl

T1E1T1R1A1M3E1T1H4Y4L1

noun

(in combination) Four methyl groups in a molecule.

OriginEnglish methyl ← German Methy ← Ancient Greek ῡ̔́λη (hū́lē) →
UncommonScrabble 19
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Meanings

nountetramethyl (uncountable)
  1. uncountablechemistry(in combination) Four methyl groups in a molecule.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*kʷetwóres
  2. Proto-Hellenic*kʷétwores
  3. Ancient Greekτέσσᾰρες (téssăres)
  4. Ancient Greekτετρᾰ- (tetră-)
  5. Englishtetra-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*médʰu
  7. Proto-Hellenic*métʰu
  8. Ancient Greekμέθυ (méthu)
  9. Proto-Indo-European*swel-der.?
  10. Ancient Greekῡ̔́λη (hū́lē)
  11. GermanMethy
  12. Englishmethyl
  13. Englishtetramethyl

From tetra- + methyl.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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