lactic
/ˈlæktɪk/ adjective
- adjective Of, relating to, or derived from milk.
- adjective (biochemistry) Relating to, or producing, lactic acid. “lactic fermentation”
Etymology
From Latin lactis (“of milk”), genitive form of lac (“milk”), with the suffix -ic.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Of or pertaining to milk; procured from sour milk or whey; as, lactic acid; lactic fermentation, etc. Lactic acid (Physiol. Chem.), a sirupy, colorless fluid, soluble in water, with an intensely sour taste and strong acid reaction. There are at least three isomeric modifications all having the formula C3H6O3. Sarcolactic or paralactic acid occurs chiefly in dead muscle tissue, while ordinary lactic acid results from fermentation. The two acids are alike in having the same constitution (expressed by the name ethylidene lactic acid), but the latter is optically inactive, while sarcolactic acid r
Etymology [L. lac, lactis, milk: cf. F. lactique. See Lacteal, and cf. Galactic.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “lactic”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details