BETAINE

betaine

(noun) a sweet tasting alkaloid that occurs in sugar beets

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Noun

betaine (countable and uncountable, plural betaines)

(uncountable, organic compound) A sweet, crystalline compound (not an alkaloid), trimethylammoniumacetate, found in sugar beet and similar plants, sometimes used to treat muscular degeneracy; the zwitterion (CH3)3N+CH2COO-

(countable, organic chemistry) Any derivative of this compound.

(countable, organic chemistry, by extension) Any similar compound, based on sulfur or phosphorus etc, having an onium ion with no hydrogen atom adjacent to the anionic atom.

Anagrams

• Beatine, antibee

Source: Wiktionary


Be"ta*ine, n. Etym: [From beta, generic name of the beet.] (Chem.)

Definition: A nitrogenous base, C5H11NO2, produced artificially, and also occurring naturally in beetroot molasses and its residues, from which it is extracted as a white crystalline substance; -- called also lycine and oxyneurine. It has a sweetish taste.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

16 April 2025

RACY

(adjective) marked by richness and fullness of flavor; “a rich ruby port”; “full-bodied wines”; “a robust claret”; “the robust flavor of fresh-brewed coffee”


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Coffee Trivia

The first coffee-house in Mecca dates back to the 1510s. The beverage was in Turkey by the 1530s. It appeared in Europe circa 1515-1519 and was introduced to England by 1650. By 1675 the country had more than 3,000 coffee houses, and coffee had replaced beer as a breakfast drink.

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