pyrene

1
[ pahy-reen, pahy-reen ]

nounBotany.
  1. a putamen or stone, especially when there are several in a single fruit; a nutlet.

Origin of pyrene

1
1830–40; <New Latin pȳrēna<Greek pȳrḗn fruit stone

Other definitions for pyrene (2 of 2)

pyrene2
[ pahy-reen ]

nounChemistry.
  1. a polycyclic, aromatic crystalline hydrocarbon, C16H10, consisting of four fused benzene rings, found in coal tar and believed to be carcinogenic.

Origin of pyrene

2
First recorded in 1880–85; pyr- + -ene

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use pyrene in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pyrene (1 of 2)

pyrene1

/ (ˈpaɪriːn) /


noun
  1. a solid polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon extracted from coal tar. Formula: C 16 H 10

Origin of pyrene

1
C19: from pyro- + -ene

British Dictionary definitions for pyrene (2 of 2)

pyrene2

/ (ˈpaɪriːn) /


noun
  1. botany any of several small hard stones that occur in a single fruit and contain a single seed each

Origin of pyrene

2
C19: from New Latin pyrena, from Greek purēn

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012