noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A drug, derived from the amygdalin of apricot kernels, once thought capable of destroying cancer cells by the release of cyanide but later banned in the United States by the FDA. countable, uncountable
2. 2
   a substance derived from amygdalin; publicized as an antineoplastic drug although there is no supporting evidence wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

amygdalinvitamin b17

Etymology

A contraction of l-mandelonitrile, from Ancient Greek ἀμυγδάλη (amugdálē, “almond”) + -o- + nitrile.

Related phrases

united states

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