Agent Orange

noun

: an herbicide widely used as a defoliant in the Vietnam War that is composed of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T and contains dioxin as a contaminant

Examples of Agent Orange in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But the first veterans to be exposed had to wait nearly 30 years before Congress passed the Agent Orange Act of 1991, which established a link between the herbicide and certain cancers and diseases. —Melissa Chan, NBC News, 18 Sep. 2024

The latency period of toxic exposure effects, as seen with Agent Orange in Vietnam, spans generations. —Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 9 Aug. 2024

He was exposed while serving stateside to Agent Orange, a tactical herbicide that was used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War era. —Lisa Hagen, Hartford Courant, 2 Mar. 2024

For example, Washington is addressing the human legacy of the Vietnam War, namely by removing unexploded ordnance and completing efforts to remediate Agent Orange contamination in the Vietnamese countryside. —Derek Grossman, Foreign Affairs, 6 Oct. 2023

Word History

Etymology

so called from the identifying color stripe on its container

First Known Use

1970, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

Agent Orange

noun

-ˈär-inj, -ˈär(-ə)nj, -ˈȯr-inj, -ˈȯr(-ə)nj 

: an herbicide widely used as a defoliant in the Vietnam War that is composed of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T and contains dioxin as a contaminant