ni·tros·a·mine (n?-tr??s?-m?n?, n??tr?s-?m??n)n. The group, N2O, having a divalent nitrogen atom bonded to a nitrogen atom that is doubly bonded to an oxygen atom, or any of a series of organic compounds having two alkyl groups bonded to this group. Nitrosamines are present in various food products and are carcinogenic in laboratory animals.[Latin nitr?sus, full of natron (from nitrum, natron; see niter) + amine.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.nitrosamine (?na?tr??s??mi?n; ?na?tr??s?æmi?n) n (Elements & Compounds) any one of a class of neutral, usually yellow oily compounds containing the divalent group =NNOCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014ni?tros?a?mine (na??tro? s??min, ?na? tro?s?æm ?n) n. any of a series of compounds with the type formula R2NNO, some of which are carcinogenic, formed in cured meats by the conversion of sodium nitrite. [