Other forms: allergens
An allergen is a food ingredient that can cause a dangerous reaction. Declare the allergens, a common allergen, free from allergens.
Fourteen must be declared by law on food sold in Britain and the European Union, including nuts, milk, eggs and sesame. Traces matter — for some people a shared fryer is enough. The word was made on the model of pathogen and antigen.
1nounallergenA substance that can cause an allergic reaction.
“Peanuts are a common allergen, so the menu marks every dish that contains them.”
allergen is a substance.
Allergy plus -gen, coined on the model of pathogen and antigen.
German
Allergie
English
allergy
English, today
allergen
Built from
Syncopated compound of allergy + -gen, coined on the model of pharmaceutical words such as pathogen and antigen. allergy Borrowed from German Allergie. Borrowed from German Allergie. Coined by Austrian pediatrician Clemens von Pirquet in 1906 from Ancient Greek ἄλλος (“other”) + ἔργον (“work, activity”), on the model of Energie.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA