Meaning of alcohol in English

Table of contents

Noun
alcohol
Etymology
mid 16th century: French (earlier form of alcool), or from medieval Latin, from Arabic al-kuḥl‘the kohl’. In early use the term referred to powders, specifically kohl, and especially those obtained by sublimation; later ‘a distilled or rectified spirit’ (mid 17th century)
Definitions
1. a liquor or brew containing alcohol as the active agent
Examples
- « alcohol (or drink) ruined him »
Derived terms
2. any of a series of volatile hydroxyl compounds that are made from hydrocarbons by distillation

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