ETHER

Ether

Ethers are a class of organic compounds that contain an ether group — an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups — of general formula R–O–R'. A typical example is the solvent and anesthetic diethyl ether, commonly referred to simply as "ether" . Ethers are common in organic chemistry and pervasive in biochemistry, as they are common linkages in carbohydrates and lignin.

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ether

Noun

  1. A compound containing an oxygen atom bonded to two hydrocarbon groups.
  2. Diethyl ether (C4H10O), a compound used as an early anaesthetic.
  3. A classical physical element, considered as prevalent in the heavens and inaccessible to humans. In some versions of alchemy, this was the fifth element in addition to air, earth, fire and water.
  4. A substance (aether) once thought to fill all space that allowed electromagnetic waves to pass through it and interact with matter, without exerting any resistance to matter or energy (disproved by Einstein in his Theory of Relativity).
  5. The sky or heavens; the upper air.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: ether
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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