A barbiturate used as a hypnotic; SYN. veronal, barbitone, diethylbarbituric acid, diethylmalonylurea.
American, barbitone.
A crystalline barbiturate C8H12N2O3 used as a sedative and hypnotic often in the form of its soluble sodium salt.

A sleep-inducing drug; veronal.
Barbital.

Organic compound having powerful soporific effect; overdose can be fatal.
Compound used in preparation of several powerful sleep-inducing and sedative drugs; such a drug.
Hypnosedative drug, commonly known as a “sleeping pill”, consisting of any salt or ester of barbituric acid C4H4O3N2. It works by depressing brain activity. Most barbiturates, being highly addictive, are no longer prescribed and are listed as controlled substances.
Tolerance develops quickly in the user so that increasingly large doses are required to induce sleep. A barbiturate's action persists for hours or days, causing confused, aggressive behavior or disorientation. Overdosage causes death by inhibiting the breathing center in the brain. Short-acting barbiturates are used as anesthetics to induce general anesthesia; slow-acting ones may be prescribed for epilepsy.

Hypnotic drug, also called barbital.