methyl

/ˈmɛθaɪl//ˈmɛθəl/

methyl noun: the univalent hydrocarbon radical, CH₃-, formally derived from methane by the loss of a hydrogen atom; a compound or part of a compound formed by the attachment of such a radical.

Noun

methyl (plural methyls)

The univalent hydrocarbon radical, CH₃-, formally derived from methane by the loss of a hydrogen atom; a compound or part of a compound formed by the attachment of such a radical.
- You might point out in the theory of oxidation of oils, in development of rancidity in oils, that many methyls accelerate this oxidation of oils. I do not want to burden you with a lecture on chemistry but there are some methyls like iron which has both a valence of two and of three. Another...1973, Robert E. Cornish, Vitamin and Mineral Deficiencies, page 119
- The southern acetates must be decarboxylated to methyls.2003, Russell Timkovich, 73: The Family of d-Type Hemes: Tetrapyrroles with Unusual Substituents, Karl M. Kadish, Kevin M. Smith, Roger Guilard (editors), The Porphyrin Handbook, Volume 12: The Iron...

methyl meaning in Hindi and Malay

methyl in Hindi

univalent hydrocarbon radical, CH3: मेथिल methil

methyl in Malay

univalent hydrocarbon radical, CH3: metil

Examples of methyl in a sentence

You might point out in the theory of oxidation of oils, in development of rancidity in oils, that many methyls accelerate this oxidation of oils.1973, Robert E. Cornish, Vitamin and Mineral Deficiencies, page 119:
The most stable form has the groups staggered and the methyls as far from each other as possible (DA^([dihedral angle]) = 180°).2005, Bruce A. Hathaway, Organic Chemistry the Easy Way, page 38:

All 18 example sentences with methyl

Forms of methyl

plural	methyls

Origin of methyl

Borrowed from German Methyl; compare French méthyle. French chemists Jean-Baptiste Dumas and Eugene Peligot, after determining methanol's chemical structure, introduced "methylene" from the Ancient Greek μέθυ (méthu, “wine”) + ὕλη (húlē, “wood, material”) with the intention of highlighting its origins, "alcohol made from wood (substance)". The term "methyl" was derived in about 1840 by back-formation from "methylene", and was then applied to describe "methyl alcohol".

Words formed from methyl

Words that rhyme with methyl

Questions about methyl

What does methyl mean?: Methyl means the univalent hydrocarbon radical, CH₃-, formally derived from methane by the loss of a hydrogen atom; a compound or part of a compound formed by the attachment of such a radical.
What is methyl in Hindi?: Methyl in Hindi is मेथिल (methil). See Methyl meaning in Hindi.
How do you use methyl in a sentence?: You might point out in the theory of oxidation of oils, in development of rancidity in oils, that many methyls accelerate this oxidation of oils.
What part of speech is methyl?: Methyl is a noun.
How do you pronounce methyl?: Methyl is pronounced /ˈmɛθaɪl/ (UK).
What is the plural of methyl?: The plural of methyl is methyls.

Words near methyl in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: methyl (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

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Cite this entry: “methyl.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/methyl. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.