Heroin

Invented as a brand name by the German pharmaceutical company Bayer, which started marketing heroine in 1895. The name was coined to evoke heroisch (“heroic”), ultimately from Greek ἥρως (hḗrōs, “hero”).

• IPA^(key): /heʁoˈiːn/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: He‧ro‧in

Heroin n (strong, genitive Heroins, no plural)

1. heroin

   Synonyms: Diacetylmorphin n, Diamorphin n

   • 1982, “Ganz Wien”, in Einzelhaft, performed by Falco:

     Ganz Wien / Ist heit auf Heroin / Ganz Wien / Träumt mit Mozambin / Ganz Wien, Wien, Wien / Greift auch zu Kokain

     All of Vienna / Is on heroin the day / All of Vienna / Dreams with Mozambine / All of Vienna, Vienna, Vienna / Also uses cocaine

• → English: heroin
• → French: héroïne
• → Italian: eroina
• → Polish: heroina

• Heroin on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^de
• “Heroin” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Heroin” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• “Heroin (Droge)” in Duden online

From Heros +‎ -in. Alteration of the variant Heroine, which is from Latin heroina.

• IPA^(key): /heˈʁoː.ɪn/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: He‧ro‧in

Heroin f (genitive Heroin, plural Heroinnen)

1. (learned, higher register) female hero

   Synonym: Heldin

2. (theater) heroine, female protagonist

• Heroine

• “Heroin (Heldin)” in Duden online