noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
General-American:bĕn′-zə-kānʹ
General-American:/ˈbɛn.zəˌkeɪn/
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A local anesthetic commonly used as a topical pain reliever.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Topics: medicine, pharmacology, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
a white crystalline ester used as a local anesthetic
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: ethyl aminobenzoate
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: local anesthetic, local anaesthetic, local, topical anesthetic, topical anaesthetic
History
Etymology
Etymology tree Arabic لُبَان (lubān) Proto-Indo-European *yew- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *yéwos Proto-Indo-Iranian *yáwas Sanskrit यव (yava)bor.? Proto-Austronesian *zawa Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *zawader.? Old Javanese jawa Old Javanese -i Old Javanese Jawi Javanese ꦗꦮꦶ (jawi)der. Arabic جَاوَة (jāwa) Proto-Afroasiatic Proto-Semitic Arabic ـِيّ (-iyy) Arabic جَاوِيّ (jāwiyy) Arabic لُبَان جَاوِيّ (lubān jāwiyy)bor. Catalan benjuíder. Middle French benjoinder. English benzoin Proto-Indo-European *-ikos Proto-Italic *-ikos Latin -icuslbor. Old French -iquebor. Middle English -ik English -ic English benzoic English -ate English benzo(ate) German Kokain German -kainbor. English -caine English benzocaine From benzo(ate) + -caine (“local anesthetic”).
Across languages
Translations
4 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Chinese Cantonese:
對氨基苯甲酸乙酯 /对氨基苯甲酸乙酯
(deoi3 on1 gei1 bun2 gaap3 syun1 jyut3 zi2)
— local anesthetic
Chinese Mandarin:
对氨基苯甲酸乙酯
(duì'ānjīběnjiǎsuānyǐzhǐ)
— local anesthetic