/ English Dictionary |
ORGANOPHOSPHATE NERVE AGENT
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Any of a series of nerve agents containing organophosphate compounds first synthesized by German chemists in 1936; in World War II the Germans tested them in concentration camps but not on the battlefield; Iraq is alleged to have used them against Iran and against the Kurds
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("organophosphate nerve agent" is a kind of...):
nerve agent; nerve gas (a toxic gas that is inhaled or absorbed through the skin and has harmful effects on the nervous and respiratory system)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "organophosphate nerve agent"):
GB; sarin (a highly toxic chemical nerve agent that inhibits the activity of cholinesterase)
GD; soman (a nerve agent easily absorbed into the body; a lethal cholinesterase inhibitor that is highly toxic when inhaled)
GA; tabun (the first known nerve agent, synthesized by German chemists in 1936; a highly toxic combustible liquid that is soluble in organic solvents and is used as a nerve gas in chemical warfare)