tetrahydrocannabinol

noun tet·ra·hy·dro·can·nab·i·nol \ ˌte-trə-ˌhī-drə-kə-ˈna-bə-ˌnȯl , -ˌnōl \

Updated on: 12 May 2018

Definition of tetrahydrocannabinol

: thc

Recent Examples of tetrahydrocannabinol from the Web

The Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol — a psychoactive compound better known as THC — was limited to 0.3, a negligible amount that won't allow for a buzz.

— beth warren, The Courier-Journal, "Hemp brings jobs and more than $16.7 million in sales to Kentucky," 1 May 2018
The drug is made from a compound in the marijuana plant called cannabidiol, a different chemical from tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, which gives marijuana its euphoric effect.

— Fortune, "Epilepsy Drug Made From Marijuana Plant Gets Backing From FDA Staff," 17 Apr. 2018
Obviously people can get high, though that does depend on the concentration of the psychoactive compound, tetrahydrocannabinol, in the strain or formulation that someone is using.

— kate sheridan, STAT, "Where marijuana is legal, opioid prescriptions fall, studies find," 2 Apr. 2018
The candies had apparently been laced with tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical responsible for how marijuana affects the brain and were being used by the student’s parents as medical marijuana.

— kristine phillips, Washington Post, "A fifth-grader thought she brought gummy candies to school. They were laced with marijuana.," 21 Jan. 2018
A few months later, Mechoulam used it to, for the first time in history, isolate, elucidate the structure of and fully synthesize tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis.

— yardena schwartz, Newsweek, "The Outsourcing of American Marijuana Research," 17 Dec. 2015
Researchers say psychoactive compounds in marijuana easily cross the placenta, exposing the fetus to perhaps 10 percent of the THC — tetrahydrocannabinol — that the mother receives, and higher concentrations if the mom uses pot repeatedly.

— author: sarah varney, Anchorage Daily News, "As marijuana laws relax, doctors say pregnant women shouldn’t partake," 3 Feb. 2018
This medicine does not include THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the psychoactive ingredient that produces a high.

— anna m. tinsley, star-telegram, "First dose of medical marijuana is legally delivered to a young girl in Texas," 1 Feb. 2018
Industrial hemp contains a mere 0.3 percent of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the substance responsible for the buzz when smoking weed.

— adam popescu, New York Times, "There’s No Place Like Home, Especially if It’s Made of Hemp," 29 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tetrahydrocannabinol.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of tetrahydrocannabinol

tetrahydro- (combined with four atoms of hydrogen) + cannabin + ¹-ol

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1940

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Medical Dictionary