alkaloid present in opium, 1838, from French codéine, coined, with chemical suffix -ine(2), from Greek kodeia "poppy head," related to kooz "prison," literally "hollow place;" kodon "bell, mouth of a trumpet;" koilos "hollow," from PIE root *kel- (2) "to cover, conceal" (see cell). Originally codeina; modern form is from 1881.