benz+ noun
( -s )
Etymology: German benzaldehyd, from benz- + aldehyd aldehyde
: a colorless nontoxic liquid aldehyde C 6 H 5 CHO that has an odor like that of bitter almond oil, that occurs in many essential oils (as bitter almond oil and peach-kernel oil) and is usually made from toluene, and that is used chiefly in flavoring and perfumery, in pharmaceutical preparations, and in synthesis (as of dyes) — called also artificial bitter almond oil ; see amygdalin