/em"i teen', -tin/ , n. Pharm.
a crystalline or white powdery substance, C 29 H 40 N 2 O 4 , the active principle of ipecac: used chiefly in the treatment of amebic dysentery and as an emetic and expectorant.
[ 1810-20; émet ( os ) vomiting + -INE 2 ; cf. F émétine ]