Glyphosate

//ˈɡlɪfəseɪt// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    N-phosphonomethyl glycine, the active ingredient of several herbicides that inhibit a plant growth enzyme. countable, uncountable

    "Two-thirds of Europeans support a ban on glyphosate, the most widely used agricultural chemical in the world’s history, according to a new Yougov poll."

  2. 2
    Any of several herbicides based on it, such as Roundup. countable, uncountable

    "In previous years Penryn Town Council has used Falmouth Town Council to fulfil the parks contract and glyphosate had been used, councillor Debra Clegg confirmed."

Example

More examples

"Two-thirds of Europeans support a ban on glyphosate, the most widely used agricultural chemical in the world’s history, according to a new Yougov poll."

Etymology

Blend of glycine + phosphonate.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.