digitalicadj.
/ˌdɪdʒᵻˈteɪlɪk/, U.S. /ˌdɪdʒᵻˈtælɪk/ Chemistry. Now rare.
Derived or extracted from plants of the genus Digitalis, or from preparations of digitalis; of, relating to, or resembling digitalis. Esp. in digitalic acid n. any of several acidic substances, esp. (a) a crystallizable acid obtained from the leaves of the common foxglove, Digitalis purpurea, in later use regarded as identical with (impure) succinic acid; (b) an acid resin present in preparations of digitalis.
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1845 Med. Times July 312/2 Digitalic acid..becomes brown more readily under the influence of alkaline substances.
1858 R. Hogg Veg. Kingdom cxlv. 566 M. Morin, of Geneva, has also discovered in the leaves [of the Fox-glove] two acids; one fixed, which he calls digitalic acid, the other volatile, and called antirrhinic acid.
1889 Proc. Pennsylvania Pharmaceut. Assoc.: Twelfth Ann. Meeting 31 The specific gravity of the finished product (made from one drachm of No. 80 digitalic powder to the pint) was 1·00154.
1897 N.Y. Med. Jrnl. 8 May 644/2 The increased arterial pressure..can not be considered the essential feature of the digitalic action.
1914 L. Kolipinski in Monthly Cycl. & Med. Bull. 7 229 To give the acid resin its proper name it was necessary to select that of digitalic acid, thereby disregarding the prior claim of Morin to the word.
1938 Amer. Heart Jrnl. 15 643 Gitalin..is extracted from a cold water infusion..after the removal of saponins and digitalic acids.
2000 K. R. Pelletier Best Alternative Med. 357 There are potential negative interactions of high-dose licorice with antihypertensives, diuretics, digoxin, and other digitalis derivatives (digitalic glycosides).
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1845