Cyclohexan

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A term referring to a chemical compound with a saturated six-carbon ring structure ; sometimes an abbreviated or informal reference to cyclohexane or related molecules ; a fragment or root used in naming derivatives in organic chemistry
2. Used either to signify a six-membered carbon ring saturated with hydrogen ; as shorthand for cyclohexane or similar substances ; or as a prefix in chemical nomenclature for derivatives containing such a ring
3. Describes a cyclic hydrocarbon with six carbon atoms bonded in a ring and fully saturated ; can also denote cyclohexane in casual or shorthand contexts ; functions as a naming prefix for related cyclic compounds

Etymology: Cyclohexane is a systematic chemical name, not an ancient word, and its parts show how it was built. "Cyclo-" comes from the Greek "kyklos", meaning circle or ring, which chemists attached to hydrocarbons whose carbon atoms close into a loop. "Hexane" combines "hex-", the Greek prefix for six, with the "-ane" ending that marks a saturated hydrocarbon with only single bonds. Together the name describes a ring of six carbon atoms, each saturated with hydrogen. The "-ane" ending follows the pattern set for alkanes, the family of saturated hydrocarbons, so "cyclohexane" simply adds the ring prefix to the six-carbon chain name. Chemists use the same building blocks for related molecules, which is why "cyclohexan-" appears as a stem in names of derivatives, such as cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone. The informal shortening "cyclohexan" is best understood as a truncated form of the standard name, used when a longer chemical name would be cumbersome in speech or on a label.