zaleplon

English

Chemical structure of zaleplon

Etymology

Probably from Ancient Greek ζάλη (zálē, “storm, distress”) +‎ -plon (“imidazopyrimidine or pyrazolopyrimidine derivative”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈzæl.əˌplɑn/

Noun

zaleplon (uncountable)

1. (pharmacology) A sedative hypnotic drug of the pyrazolopyrimidine class, mainly used to treat insomnia, rare among such drugs in having been found not to cause an increase in road traffic accidents.

References

• “zaleplon”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.