Valeric

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. A category of organic chemicals defined by a five-carbon alkyl chain often used in industrial processes
2. Pertaining to a particular carboxylic acid that has distinct aromatic properties and is utilized in specific scent compositions
3. Relating to chemical compounds derived from or involving valeric acid featuring a five-carbon chain ; associated with valeric acid’s role in producing characteristic scents in perfumery

Etymology: Valeric acid takes its name from valerian, the flowering plant whose roots have been used for centuries as a sedative. The acid was first found in valerian root, and chemists named the family of related compounds after the plant, so the word is a plant name turned into a chemical label. The ending "-ic" has a long pedigree. It passed from Latin "-icus" through Old French "-ique" into Middle English as "-ik", and English eventually settled on the spelling "-ic". Attaching it to a plant name produced an adjective meaning "of or relating to" the substance in question. Valerian itself is the source of the whole chain. Chemistry borrowed the plant's name to mark a substance drawn from it, so valeric describes a compound rather than the herb.