Meaning & use
Ptomaines
Last updated
Toxic compounds produced by the bacterial decomposition of proteins in decaying animal or plant matter.
See it in a sentence
Early food-poisoning theories blamed ptomaines found in spoiled meat.
The lab detected ptomaines in the sample of rotting fish.
A note on using this word
From Greek 'ptoma,' meaning 'corpse'; the once-popular idea of 'ptomaine poisoning' has largely been replaced by modern bacteriological explanations of food poisoning.
Words with a similar meaning
decomposition toxins
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