for·mal·de·hyde   Pronunciation Key  (fôr-mld-hd)
n.
A colorless gaseous compound, HCHO, the simplest aldehyde, used for manufacturing melamine and phenolic resins, fertilizers, dyes, and embalming fluids and in aqueous solution as a preservative and disinfectant.
[form(ic acid) + aldehyde.]
 
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.


formaldehyde

\For*mal"de*hyde\, n. [Formic + aldehyde.] (Chem.) A colorless, volatile liquid, H2CO, resembling acetic or ethyl aldehyde, and chemically intermediate between methyl alcohol and formic acid.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.


formaldehyde

n : a colorless poisonous gas; made by the oxidation of methanol [syn: methanal]
Source: WordNet ® 1.6, © 1997 Princeton University