median lethal dose

Save This Word!

noun

the quantity of a lethal substance, as a poison or pathogen, or of ionizing radiation that will kill 50 percent of the organisms subjected to it in a specified time period. Symbol: LD50

QUIZ

GOOSES. GEESES. I WANT THIS QUIZ ON PLURAL NOUNS!

Test how much you really know about regular and irregular plural nouns with this quiz.

Question 1 of 9

Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of median lethal dose

First recorded in 1945–50

Words nearby median lethal dose

medial supraclavicular nerve, median, median artery, median bar of Mercier, median groove of tongue, median lethal dose, median line, median longitudinal raphe of tongue, median nerve, median plane, median rhinoscopy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use median lethal dose in a sentence

If laughter is the best medicine, The Comeback made you feel enough pain to need a dose—and then it delivered in spades.
‘The Comeback’ Finale: Give Lisa Kudrow All of the Awards|Kevin Fallon|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But others say a still-unidentified man likely fired the round that caused a lethal head wound.
Exclusive: Bin Laden ‘Shooter’ Under Investigation for Leaking Secrets|Shane Harris|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After World War I, unions began their losing and lethal battle with textile owners across the South.
Glenn Beck Is Now Selling Hipster Clothes. Really.|Ana Marie Cox|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Servin is a rarity: A cop who is being tried for his lethal actions.
Chicago’s Cops Don’t Even Get Investigated for Shooting People in the Back|Justin Glawe|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Here are just a few of the most egregious uses of lethal force by Chicago police.
Chicago’s Cops Don’t Even Get Investigated for Shooting People in the Back|Justin Glawe|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But I couldn't get rid of the notion that he would hand me out the same dose he had given MacRae if only he had the power.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
He's getting a little stiff in the joints of his good nature, but a good dose of flattery'll limber him up considerable.
Dorothy at Skyrie|Evelyn Raymond
Nor could they forget the Sunday mornings when his reverence took his dose of egg-flip before church, in order to clear his voice.
Skipper Worse|Alexander Lange Kielland
Great caution is necessary in the use of these powerful medicines to avoid an over-dose.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Ill kill half Dunellen and all Mayfield with overdoses before another night, and then take a big dose myself.
Tessa Wadsworth's Discipline|Jennie M. Drinkwater

British Dictionary definitions for median lethal dose

median lethal dose

mean lethal dose

noun

the amount of a drug or other substance that, when administered to a group of experimental animals, will kill 50 per cent of the group in a specified time

the amount of ionizing radiation that will kill 50 per cent of a population in a specified time

Abbreviation: LD 50

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