cineole

[ sin-ee-ohl ]

noun

, Chemistry, Pharmacology.

1. a colorless, oily, slightly water-soluble liquid terpene ether, C 10 H 18 O, having a camphorlike odor and a pungent, spicy, cooling taste, found in eucalyptus, cajeput, and other essential oils: used in flavoring, perfumery, and medicine chiefly as an expectorant.

Word History and Origins

Origin of cineole¹

Alteration of New Latin oleum cinae, equivalent to oleum oil + genitive singular of cina wormseed