A combining form or prefix relating to butyric acid or butter, used in forming chemical and scientific terms.
From Latin butyrum 'butter' (itself from Greek boutyron, literally 'cow cheese'). Used as a combining form in chemistry to indicate butyric acid derivatives.
The prefix 'butyr-' is a linguistic time-capsule showing how ancient Greeks and Romans understood dairy—they mashed together words for 'cow' and 'cheese' to describe butter!
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