chloroform

1 of 2

noun

chlo·​ro·​form ˈklȯr-ə-ˌfȯrm How to pronounce chloroform (audio)
: a colorless volatile heavy toxic liquid CHCl3 with an ether odor used especially as a solvent

chloroform

2 of 2

verb

chloroformed; chloroforming; chloroforms

transitive verb

: to treat with or as if with chloroform especially so as to produce anesthesia, insensibility, or death

Examples of chloroform in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Investigators found damaging evidence against her, including internet searches for chloroform and neck-breaking and traces of human decomposition in the trunk of her car. Fortesa Latifi, Rolling Stone, 5 Mar. 2025 As for New York City, pollutants in the drinking water system included hexavalent chromium, chloroform and various disinfection byproducts. Sharon Udasin, The Hill, 26 Feb. 2025
Verb
The first is a li’l pony that has to be chloroformed so Siegfried can castrate it. Alice Burton, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2025 But elsewhere in the cosmos, life might be built from different chemicals that dissolve and assemble in some other liquid: perhaps methane, kerosene, or even chloroform. Kiona N. Smith, Discover Magazine, 26 June 2019 See All Example Sentences for chloroform

Word History

Etymology

Noun

French chloroforme, from chlor- + formyle formyl; from its having been regarded as a trichloride of this group

First Known Use

Noun

1838, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1848, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of chloroform was in 1838

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Chloroform.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chloroform. Accessed 15 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

chloroform

1 of 2 noun
chlo·​ro·​form ˈklōr-ə-ˌfȯrm How to pronounce chloroform (audio)
ˈklȯr-
: a colorless heavy poisonous liquid that smells like ether and is used especially to dissolve other compounds

chloroform

2 of 2 verb
: to treat with chloroform especially so as to produce anesthesia or death

Medical Definition

chloroform

1 of 2 noun
chlo·​ro·​form ˈklōr-ə-ˌfȯrm, ˈklȯr- How to pronounce chloroform (audio)
: a colorless volatile heavy toxic liquid CHCl3 with an ether odor used especially as a solvent

called also trichloromethane

chloroform

2 of 2 transitive verb
: to treat with chloroform especially so as to produce anesthesia or death

More from Merriam-Webster on chloroform

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