medication
Americannoun
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the use or application of medicine.
-
a medicinal substance; medicament.
noun
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treatment with drugs or remedies
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a drug or remedy
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of medication
1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin medicātiōn- (stem of medicātiō ). See medicate, -ion
Explanation
If your doctor prescribes something for you to take, it's medication. Medication is another way to say "medicine" or "drug." Your poison ivy rash might be so bad that you need to take medication to stop the itching. People need medication for all sorts of illnesses and disorders throughout their lives, from headache medication to medication for cancer treatment. In the fifteenth century, the word meant "medical treatment of a disease or wound," from the Latin medicationem, "healing or cure," with its root in medicus, which means both "healing" and "physician."
Vocabulary lists containing medication
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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.
Doctors only gave Thurman a methotrexate injection, a medication treatment, when her OB-GYN went to the hospital and spoke to the staff in person on her fourth visit to the emergency room.
From Salon • May 26, 2026
If many of these patients do not actually benefit, doctors could eventually reduce unnecessary medication use, limit side effects, and make recovery regimens easier to follow.
From Science Daily • May 25, 2026
Loo said they managed to gather his mother-in-law’s medication, supplies for their French bulldog, Wednesday, important documents and other essentials.
From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2026
Many public employers started covering weight-loss medication for teachers, firefighters and police officers a few years ago when the blockbuster drugs hit the market, following the lead of big companies.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 23, 2026
The few doctors left in Kabul didn’t have the right equipment to diagnose what was ailing her or the right medication to make her better.
From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai
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.
