How to Use pentobarbital in a Sentence

pentobarbital

noun
  • At the time, the state was out of pentobarbital, the drug used in lethal injections.
    — Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2025
  • His head was shaking slightly as the lethal dose of the sedative pentobarbital began.
    — NBC News, 28 June 2018
  • As a result, states looking to use pentobarbital in their procedures had to look elsewhere to buy the drug.
    — Abdullah Shihipar, Teen Vogue, 30 Oct. 2018
  • Hawley wrote that the lethal dose of pentobarbital could be administered through a leg or other vein instead of the arm.
    — Fox News, 20 Mar. 2018
  • If the state’s previous drug, pentobarbital, were available, the state would use it, attorneys for the state say.
    — Jonathan Mattise, The Seattle Times, 6 Aug. 2018
  • On Wednesday night, with a dose of pentobarbital pumped into a vein, Ricks’ wish was fulfilled.
    — Emerson Clarridge updated March 12, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 12 Mar. 2026
  • The first drug, sodium thiopental or pentobarbital, put the inmate to sleep; the second brought on paralysis; and the third stopped the heart.
    — Steve Almasy, CNN, 5 Dec. 2019
  • Moral objections to the death penalty are at the heart of the issue surrounding pentobarbital.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 25 June 2024
  • The glass could’ve been how Abby got the pentobarbital in Merritt’s system.
    — Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2024
  • Ernest Johnson died from an injection of pentobarbital at the state prison in Bonne Terre.
    — From Usa Today Network and Wire Reports, USA TODAY, 7 Oct. 2021
  • Georgia plans to use pentobarbital, seen as a more reliable drug, to induce unconsciousness and then death.
    — Tracy Connor, NBC News, 15 May 2017
  • Barr has approved a new procedure for lethal injections that replaces a three-drug cocktail with a single drug, pentobarbital.
    — Danny McDonald, BostonGlobe.com, 25 July 2019
  • For the executions, the government will use one drug, pentobarbital, instead of a three-drug cocktail.
    — Hanna Kozlowska, Quartz, 25 July 2019
  • This would replace the three-drug cocktail used in past federal executions with a single drug called pentobarbital.
    — Justin L. MacK, Indianapolis Star, 21 Nov. 2019
  • Bucklew has proposed that the state use lethal gas instead of an injection of pentobarbital, if the execution is carried out.
    — Mark Sherman, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Apr. 2018
  • In September, after 14 great years that quickly went bad, Biff took a shot of pentobarbital in a lame leg and passed away.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 27 Oct. 2021
  • He was executed with a lethal dose of the depressant drug pentobarbital, according to the outlet.
    — Brenton Blanchet, People.com, 2 Nov. 2024
  • One needle carrying the lethal dose of the sedative pentobarbital was inserted in his right arm, the usual procedure.
    — Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 25 Sep. 2024
  • Goodall took his life with an intravenous drip of pentobarbital, a chemical often used as an anesthetic but which is lethal in excessive doses.
    — Philipp Jenne, Sun-Sentinel.com, 10 May 2018
  • Lab results from tests of the ingredient in which pentobarbital was found confirmed the animal fat was sourced from cow, chicken, and pig, which are common sources in pet food.
    — David J. Neal, miamiherald, 4 Mar. 2018
  • Johnson was strapped to a gurney and injected with lethal doses of pentobarbital, according to Reuters.
    — Dom Calicchio, Fox News, 15 Jan. 2021
  • As the lethal dose of the powerful sedative pentobarbital began, Ochoa closed his eyes and had no visible reaction.
    — CBS News, 6 Feb. 2020
  • If put to death, Wilson would be the second Georgia prisoner to die from an injection of pentobarbital this year.
    — Joshua Sharpe, ajc, 13 June 2019
  • The state will use pentobarbital to execute O’Steen.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Sep. 2025
  • The lawyers presented evidence that the drug, a sedative called pentobarbital, would flood the prisoners’ lungs with froth and foam, causing pain and terror akin to death by drowning.
    — Isaac Arnsdorf, ProPublica, 11 Jan. 2021
  • The new lethal injection protocol uses the single drug pentobarbital, as opposed to three drugs under the previous method.
    — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 21 Mar. 2026
  • Fourteen states have used pentobarbital in more than 200 executions, and the Supreme Court has upheld the use of the drug.
    — Kristine Phillips, USA TODAY, 25 July 2019
  • Kevin Johnson, 37, died after an injection of pentobarbital at the state prison in Bonne Terre.
    — Jim Salter, ajc, 30 Nov. 2022
  • The state appears to now use two doses of the sedative pentobarbital, with the attorneys saying the inmates drown in a rush of fluid into their lungs but are paralyzed and cannot react.
    — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2025
  • King argued that the state must disclose more information about the protocol and the quality of its pentobarbital on hand in order for Sigmon to have made a fair choice.
    — Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 2 Mar. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pentobarbital.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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