a viscous liquid with an odor of ammonia, C2H7NO, used to remove carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide from natural gas, and in the manufacture of antibiotics
Also called: colamine
Word origin
[1895–1900; ethanol + amine]This word is first recorded in the period 1895–1900. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: Marxism, backstage, backwind, flamenco, hit-and-run