an anesthetic drug, C17H25N, used as an animal tranquilizer: also widely used in several forms as an illicit hallucinogen
Also called: angel dust, PCP
Word origin
[1955–60; phen- + cycl(ic) + -id3 + -ine2]This word is first recorded in the period 1955–60. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: cassette, geodesic dome, new wave, opioid, rollout-id is a suffix used in the names of chemical compounds. Other words that use the affix-id include: lipid, plasmid; -ine is a suffix, of no assignable meaning, appearing in nouns of Greek, Latin, or Frenchorigin. Other words that use the affix -ine include: doctrine, famine, routine