pharmaceutical
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pharmaceutical
First recorded in 1640–50; pharmaceutic(s) + -al 1
Explanation
A pharmaceutical is any kind of drug used for medicinal purposes, like cough syrup or sleeping pills. You may have heard of a pharmacy, which is a place where you can buy medicinal drugs, or a pharmacist, which is a person who prepares those drugs. In general, a pharmaceutical is anything related to pharmacies or pharmacists, though it especially refers to the kinds of medicines that they sell. Pharmaceuticals are often contrasted with what are called recreational drugs, which are the illegal kind that are generally used for entertainment purposes rather than to help heal the body.
Vocabulary lists containing pharmaceutical
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Pharmacy Words
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Merck advanced 5.3% following promising trial results for an experimental cancer drug combination as the pharmaceutical giant races to defend its oncology franchise ahead of a key patent expiration.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
It is an investment with "a whole bunch of zeros behind the dollars", he says - and one pharmaceutical companies so far have not seen as being profitable.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
As a result of intense lobbying by the branded pharmaceutical industry, patent-term extensions were born in the U.S. in the early 1980s under what is now more commonly known as the Hatch-Waxman Act.
From MarketWatch • May 21, 2026
Puig made it clear his mind was made up in favor of the pharmaceutical companies, which he attributed in a later interview to paying attention and diligently taking notes.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026
He had recently made a decision with his medical school that becoming a doctor was not in the cards for him, and he moved to the Bronx, where he worked as a pharmaceutical salesman.
From "The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates" by Wes Moore
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
