(|)trī|nī.trō+ noun
Etymology: International Scientific Vocabulary trinitr- + toluene
: the flammable toxic symmetrical trinitro derivative CH 3 C 6 H 2 (NO 2 ) 3 of toluene that is obtained by nitrating toluene as the light yellow crystalline alpha form darkening to reddish brown on exposure to light, that is stable at temperatures up to 100° C and even higher and is insensitive to friction or ordinary shock but is a high explosive, and that is used either alone as bursting charge for shells, bombs, and grenades or as an ingredient of various explosives and is also used as an intermediate in chemical synthesis (as of phloroglucinol) — called also TNT, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene