A colourless, acrid, liquid aldehyde obtained by dehydration of glycerol, used for making plastics and as an aquatic herbicide.
((n.) A limpid, colorless, highly volatile liquid, obtained by
the dehydration of glycerin, or the destructive distillation of neutral
fats containing glycerin. Its vapors are intensely irritating.)
Origin:
Mid 19th century. From German Acrolein from classical Latin ācris sharp, pungent + olēre to smell + German -in.