Compounds having the structure
RC≡N; thus
C-substituted derivatives of hydrocyanic acid,
HC≡N. In systematic nomenclature, the suffix nitrile denotes the triply bound
≡N atom, not the carbon atom attached to it.
See also: cyanides, isocyanides, carbonitriles
Source:
PAC, 1995, 67, 1307. 'Glossary of class names of organic compounds and reactivity intermediates based on structure (IUPAC Recommendations 1995)' on page 1350 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac199567081307)