HealthAugust 16, 2026

hydroxychloroquine

hy-DROK-see-KLOR-uh-kwine

Definition

A medication historically used to treat malaria and certain autoimmune conditions, which became the subject of controversial and unauthorized research regarding its efficacy against Covid-19.

Etymology

The word is a chemical name composed of 'hydroxy-' (referring to the chemical group OH), 'chlor-' (for chlorine), and 'quine' (a suffix derived from quinine, the classic malaria treatment).

In the news

The article references hydroxychloroquine as the substance touted by Didier Raoult during the pandemic, leading to a massive unauthorized therapeutic trial that was later retracted.

Review finds ethical concerns in studies from Marseille research institute previously connected to Didier Raoult

Read the full article ↗

Le Monde.fr

Related words

Learn words like this every day

Meet new words every morning.

Newspoken pulls carefully chosen words from the day’s news — with clear definitions, context, and light review that makes them stick. Get it on your phone.