noun a pharmaceutical anaesthetic used as a recreational drug. Gamma hydroxybutyrate is a foul-tasting liquid, invented in the 1960s by Dr. Henri Laborit, who swore by its powers as an aphrodisiac. The drug has been marketed as an anaesthetic and a health supplement, but it is a heightened sense of touch, sustained erections and longer orgasms that make it popular with 'up-for-it clubbers' US, 1990