Standard Lemma guide
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.
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noun
Any of a group of alkaloids that include caffeine, theophylline, and theobromine as well as the parent compound, a precursor of uric acid found in many organs of the body.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Topics: chemistry, natural-sciences, physical-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
crystalline oxidation product of the metabolism of nucleoproteins; precursor of uric acid; found in many organs and in urine
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: organic compound
History
From international scientific vocabulary, from French xanthine, reflecting New Latin combining forms: xanth- + -ine; ultimately from Ancient Greek ξανθός (xanthós, “yellow”), because xanthine is yellowish-white. By surface analysis, xanth- + -ine.
Across languages
19 source translations are retained for this English entry.
