a liquid optically active terpene with a lemon-like odour, found in lemon, orange, peppermint, and other essential oils and used as a wetting agent and in the manufacture of resins. Formula: C10H16
Word origin
C19: from New Latin limonum lemon
limonene in American English
(ˈlɪməˌnin)
noun
any of three isomeric terpenes, C10H16, present in many plant products such as lemon peel, orange oil, pine needles, peppermint, etc.
Word origin
< ModL Limonum (< Fr limon, lemon) + -ene
Examples of 'limonene' in a sentence
limonene
Lemon zest contains terpenes, fragrant ethereal oils such as limonene, nerol and terpineol.
The Times Literary Supplement (2013)
This dish also gives us limonene, a supernutrient that helps to disarm nitrosamines, a major pollutant in cigarette smoke.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The lemon and orange zest is rich in limonene, which appears to disarm a range of carcinogens, including nitrosamines in tobacco smoke.