apothecary

American  

[uh-poth-uh-ker-ee] / əˈpɒθ əˌkɛr i /

noun

• apothecaries
  plural

1. a druggist; a pharmacist.

2. a pharmacy or drugstore.

3. (especially in England and Ireland) a druggist licensed to prescribe medicine.

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apothecary British  

/ əˈpɒθɪkərɪ /

noun

1. an archaic word for pharmacist

2. law a chemist licensed by the Society of Apothecaries of London to prescribe, prepare, and sell drugs

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• apothecaries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of apothecary

1325–75; Middle English (< Old French ) < Medieval Latin apothēcārius seller of spices and drugs, Late Latin: shopkeeper, equivalent to Latin apothēc ( a ) shop, storehouse (< Greek apothḗkē; see apo-, theca) + -ārius -ary

Explanation

Although the sign at the back of the shop in the old town square said apothecary, most people called the man behind the counter by his modern title, "pharmacist," instead. This five-syllable word, apothecary, which entered English in the 14th century, derives from the Latin apothēca, "storehouse." It became a title for the person who was skilled in preparing medicines. "Pharmacist" is a more common synonym for apothecary. Some contemporary companies and drugstore owners use the old-fashioned charm of the term apothecary to label products they sell.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

apothecary apothecaries

Instead of his house, we were at a New Age event venue in a strip mall that also contains an apothecary, a dry cleaner, and a head shop.

From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026

Tishler’s new boss, George W. Merck, was heir to a family enterprise dating to 1668, when an ancestor opened an apothecary in Darmstadt, Germany.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Serge's own artworks, including a distorted Count Duckula and a vintage apothecary cabinet, decorate the kitchen.

From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026

Instead of shelves of alcohol, apothecary drawers stocked with ingredients like goji berries and angelica root line the walls, permeating the room with their scent.

From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026

But my mother must have been around my age and still working at the apothecary shop with her parents.

From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins

There are more than 50 Chinese herbal apothecaries in the Los Angeles area, according to Willie So, sales director of Chinatown-based Solstice Medicine, a leading distributor of traditional Chinese medicine products since 1979.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2024

The candy heart was born during the lozenge craze of the mid-1800s, when apothecaries sold medicated candies to soothe sore throats and suppress coughs.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 7, 2023

My last trip to Lagos, Nigeria, where I grew up, was in January 2020, and the visits I took to market apothecaries with her have stayed with me.

From New York Times ● Jan. 21, 2022

Many, in an homage to ancient apothecaries, are decorated with ceramic urns once used for herbal remedies.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 31, 2021

But the name was well-earned, because apothecaries were ancient, dealing in the old ways of medicine, too.

From "A Monster Calls" by Patrick Ness