calomel en · NOUN
Etymology
From French calomel.
Meanings
-
(countable, uncountable) Mercurous chloride Hg₂Cl₂, formerly used as a laxative and disinfectant and to treat syphilis.
“Where am I?” said the little spectre, in a pathetic voice. “And why was I born in the Calomel days, and why did I have all that Calomel given me?”
1859, Charles Dickens, The Haunted House:What a pity there is not some mental calomel! for Mr. Lushington's equanimity was in a bilious fever with Edward Lorraine's appearance of luxurious enjoyment.
1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XVII, in Romance and Reality. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 190:He is remembered for his free use of calomel and the lancet. Mrs. Jane Merrill Ketcham, one of his patients in her childhood, says “it is no exaggeration to say that his pills were as large as cherries; twenty grains of calomel was a common dose and antimony until one was sure he was poisoned.”
1919, Laura Fletcher Hodges, Early Indianapolis, page 23:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| calomels | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Translations (7)
tr kalomel (mercurous chloride) · ro calomel (mercurous chloride) · fi kalomeli (mercurous chloride) · fr calomel (mercurous chloride) · ru каломе́ль (mercurous chloride) · eo kalomelo (mercurous chloride) · it calomelano (mercurous chloride)