acetylsalicylic acid

noun

ace·​tyl·​sal·​i·​cyl·​ic acid ə-ˈsē-tᵊl-ˌsa-lə-ˌsi-lik- 

: a white crystalline derivative C₉H₈O₄ of salicylic acid used for relief of pain and fever : aspirin sense 1

Aspirin is acetylsalicylic acid and is based on salicylic acid, which was originally extracted from willow bark.

—Berkeley Wellness Letter

Episodes are often precipitated by the ingestion of alcohol and chocolate and do not occur after exercise or the use of acetylsalicylic acid as in this patient.

—Mandakolathur R. Murali et al.

Examples of acetylsalicylic acid in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Other NSAIDs in this category include aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) and Aleve (naproxen).12 While usually mild, these rashes can sometimes develop into more serious conditions. —Sarah Jividen, Verywell Health, 12 Sep. 2024

Beardsley asked his chemists to develop an effervescent tablet with aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) and sodium bicarbonate as the main ingredients. —Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Feb. 2024

Hoffmann improved on earlier work of French chemist Charles Frederic Gerhardt, who derived acetylsalicylic acid from plants, but only in an impure, unstable form. —Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Aug. 2023

This week in 1897, Dr. Felix Hoffmann successfully created a chemically pure and stable form of acetylsalicylic acid, a new kind of pain reliever. —Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Aug. 2022

Hoffmann had improved on the earlier work of French chemist Charles Frederic Gerhardt, who derived acetylsalicylic acid from plants, but only in an impure, unstable form (1853). —Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Aug. 2022

Tend Skin Women's AfterShave/Post Waxing Solution ($16, Amazon), for example, contains the anti-inflammatory agent acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin). —Melanie Rud, SELF, 16 June 2022

Various historic accounts report that aspirin was registered in the Imperial Patent Office in Berlin on March 6, 1899, as the brand name for acetylsalicylic acid, on behalf of the German pharmaceutical company Friedrich Bayer & Co. —Kevin Dayhoff, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 19 Feb. 2022

To bolster this kind of spot treatment, Dr. Francesca Fusco, a dermatologist at Wexler Dermatology in New York City, dissolves an aspirin into warm water before freezing, as the acetylsalicylic acid helps to dry up breakouts. —Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 22 Apr. 2021

Word History

Etymology

partial translation of German Acetylosalicylsäure, from Acetyl acetyl + Salicylsäure salicylic acid

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for acetylsalicylic acid

• antacid
• placid

Kids Definition

acetylsalicylic acid

noun

ace·​tyl·​sal·​i·​cyl·​ic acid ə-ˈsēt-ᵊl-ˌsal-ə-ˌsil-ik- 

: aspirin sense 1

Medical Definition

acetylsalicylic acid

noun

ace·​tyl·​sal·​i·​cyl·​ic acid ə-ˈsēt-ᵊl-ˌsal-ə-ˌsil-ik- 

: aspirin sense 1