chloroform
chloroform
Clear, colourless, heavy, nonflammable liquid organic compound with a pleasant etherlike odour, chemical formula CHCl. It was the first substance successfully used as a surgical anesthetic (1847); being somewhat toxic, it has been increasingly displaced by other substances for this purpose. It has some industrial uses, primarily as a solvent.
This entry comes from Encyclopædia Britannica Concise.
For the full entry on chloroform, visit Britannica.com.
Learn More About
Seen & Heard 
What made you look up chloroform? Please tell us what you were reading, watching or discussing that led you here.
