alkaloid Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun natural bases containing nitrogen found in plants

WordNet


Al"ka*loid, Al`ka*loid"al adjective (Also<
  • Alkaloid
  • Alkaloidal
)
Etymology
Alkali + -oid: cf. F. alcaloïde.
Definitions
  1. Pertaining to, resembling, or containing, alkali.
Al"ka*loid noun
Definitions
  1. (Chem.) An organic base, especially one of a class of substances occurring ready formed in the tissues of plants and the bodies of animals. Alcaloids all contain nitrogen, carbon, and hydrogen, and many of them also contain oxygen. They include many of the active principles in plants; thus, morphine and narcotine are alkaloids found in opium.

Webster 1913