formaldehyde - Wiktionary, the free dictionary


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Structure diagram of formaldehyde

From form(yl) +‎ aldehyde.

  • IPA(key): /fɔː(ɹ)ˈmældɪhaɪd/
  • Hyphenation: for‧mal‧de‧hyde

formaldehyde (countable and uncountable, plural formaldehydes)

  1. (organic chemistry) The simplest aldehyde, HCHO, a colourless gas that has many industrial applications; it dissolves in water to give formol (10%) and formalin.

    • 2010, Don Thompson, The $12 Million Stuffed Shark, Aurum Press Limited, →ISBN:

      The shark chosen to replace the original was injected with 224 gallons of formaldehyde, ten times the amount used on the first shark and in a stronger concentration.

    • 2024 March 19, Maeve McClenaghan, “Damien Hirst formaldehyde animal works dated to 1990s were made in 2017”, in The Guardian‎[1], →ISSN:

      Back in 2006, Hirst found himself at the centre of a different debate arising out of the need to refurbish or update formaldehyde pieces that are prone to decay. It related to the piece that made him famous: the formaldehyde shark The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living (1991), which had been bought by the US hedge fund billionaire Steve Cohen for $8m.

organic compound

Translations to be checked