excipient

[ ik-sip-ee-uhnt ]

/ ɪkˈsɪp i ənt /

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noun Pharmacology.

a pharmacologically inert, adhesive substance, as honey, syrup, or gum arabic, used to bind the contents of a pill or tablet.

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THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of excipient

1720–30; <Latin excipient- (stem of excipiēns), present participle of excipere to take out, except, take up, equivalent to ex-ex-¹ + -cipi- (stem of combining form of capere to take) + -ent--ent

Words nearby excipient

Exchange Rate Mechanism, exchange student, exchequer, excide, excimer, excipient, exciple, excipulum, excircle, excisable, excise

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use excipient in a sentence

A pharmaceutical preparation, in which glycerin is employed as the excipient.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I|Arnold Cooley
The sugar of milk, about 10 per cent., or 1⁄2 grain per pill, no doubt is simply an excipient.
The Propaganda for Reform in Proprietary Medicines, Vol. 2 of 2|Various
For an excipient in manipulating a pill mass which do you prefer—the magnesia carbonate or the pulverised glycerrhiza radix?
Strictly Business|O. Henry
Excipient, ek-sip′i-ent, n. a substance mixed with a medicine to give it consistence, or used as a vehicle for its administration.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M)|Various

An excipient for medicinal agents when they are to be administered in the form of bolus.
Cooley's Practical Receipts, Volume II|Arnold Cooley

British Dictionary definitions for excipient

excipient

/ (ɪkˈsɪpɪənt) /

noun

a substance, such as sugar or gum, used to prepare a drug or drugs in a form suitable for administration

Word Origin for excipient

C18: from Latin excipiēns excepting, from excipere to except

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