toluidine

T1O1L1U1I1D2I1N1E1

noun

Any of the three isomeric aromatic amines derived from toluene; they are used in the synthesis of certain dyes

OriginGerman Nitrotoluid ← Spanish tolúes →
UncommonScrabble 10
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Meanings

nountoluidine (plural toluidines)

plural toluidines

  1. chemistryAny of the three isomeric aromatic amines derived from toluene; they are used in the synthesis of certain dyes

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
aminotoluene

Origin

  1. Spanishtolúes“name of a pre-Columbian people of the area”
  2. GermanNitrotoluid
  3. Englishtoluidine

Coined in 1845 by James Sheridan Muspratt and August Wilhelm von Hofmann who discovered the compound in the same year. They appended -ine to nitrotoluide, an obsolete term for nitrotoluene, which they reduced to get toluidine. Further, from German Nitrotoluid, from Toluid, an obsolete term for toluyl radical, both proposed by Jöns Jacob Berzelius in 1843 after tolu (Tolu balsam), which itself is from the Colombian city of Tolú, from Spanish tolúes (“name of a pre-Columbian people of the area”). By surface analysis, toluene + -idine

More words from German, Spanish

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Polish aminotoluen, toluidyna
  • aminotoluenTranslations
  • toluidynaTranslations
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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