DDT

noun

ˌdē-(ˌ)dē-ˈtē 

: a colorless odorless water-insoluble insecticide C₁₄H₉Cl₅ that is an aromatic organochlorine banned in the U.S. that tends to accumulate and persist in ecosystems and has toxic effects on many vertebrates

Examples of DDT in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Exposure to the pesticide DDT in the 1960s weakened the shells of eggs laid by merlins and other raptors, and fewer of their chicks survived. —Tom Langen, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025

When the creature eventually gets munched on by a bigger fish, the concentration of DDT in the new predator's bloodstream only heightens. —Sophie Hartley, IndyStar, 3 Sep. 2025

Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, published in three parts in the magazine in 1962 and later as a book, alerted the country to the devastation of the pesticide DDT and is credited with launching the modern environmental movement. —Matthew Carey, Deadline, 1 Sep. 2025

Lynch wiggled out and hit Bella with a reverse DDT. —Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

dichlor- + diphenyl + trichlor- (from tri- + chlor-)

First Known Use

1943, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

DDT

noun

ˌdēd-(ˌ)ē-ˈtē 

: a colorless formerly used insecticide that is poisonous to many animals with backbones

Medical Definition

DDT

noun

ˌdē-(ˌ)dē-ˈtē 

: a colorless odorless water-insoluble crystalline insecticide C₁₄H₉Cl₅ that tends to accumulate in ecosystems and has toxic effects on many vertebrates

called also chlorophenothane, dicophane