醚 is the chemistry term for ether. The best-known member is 乙醚 (diethyl ether), historically a surgical anesthetic. It is a technical word, rarely heard outside science.
The wine-jar radical on the left, a pictograph of a fermentation vessel. It marks the character as a chemical of the alcohol and distillation family — fitting for ether. It groups 醚 with 酒, 醇, and 酸.
