Dictionary.com

decoction

[ dih-kok-shuhn ]
/ dɪˈkɒk ʃən /
Save This Word!

noun
the act of decocting.
Pharmacology.
  1. an extract obtained by decocting.
  2. water in which a crude vegetable drug has been boiled and which therefore contains the constituents or principles of the substance soluble in boiling water.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Origin of decoction

1350–1400; Middle English decoccioun<Old French decoction<Late Latin dēcoctiōn- (stem of dēcoctiō) a boiling down, equivalent to dēcoct(us), past participle of dēcoquere (dē-de- + coc-, for coquere to cook1 + -tus past participle suffix) + -iōn--ion

OTHER WORDS FROM decoction

de·coc·tive, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use decoction in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for decoction

decoction
/ (dɪˈkɒkʃən) /

noun
pharmacol the extraction of the water-soluble substances of a drug or medicinal plants by boiling
the essence or liquor resulting from this

Word Origin for decoction

C14: from Old French, from Late Latin dēcoctiō, from dēcoquere to boil down, from coquere to cook
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
FEEDBACK