toxic
[tok-sik]
- of, pertaining to, affected with, or caused by a toxin or poison: a toxic condition.
- acting as or having the effect of a poison; poisonous: a toxic drug.
- causing unpleasant feelings; harmful or malicious: a toxic boyfriend; toxic criticism.
- pertaining to or noting debt that will probably not be repaid: toxic mortgages.
- pertaining to or noting a financial instrument or other asset that has no value or an unknown value because there is no market for it: toxic mortgage-backed securities.
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- a toxic chemical or other substance.
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Origin of toxic
1655–65; < Late Latin toxicus poisonous, adj. derivative of Latin toxicum poison < Greek toxikón (orig. short for toxikòn phármakon literally, bow poison, i.e., poison used on arrows), equivalent to tóx(on) bow + -ikon, neuter of -ikos -ic
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for non-toxic
secure, healthy, certain, reliable, harmless, dependable, pure, clear, innocuous, simple, naive, powerless, gentle, innocent, inoffensive, painless, nontoxic, sound, competent, tameExamples from the Web for non-toxic
Historical Examples of non-toxic
The double salt is non-toxic, though sometimes in exceedingly weak patients it produces vertigo.
The Medicinal Plants of the PhilippinesT. H. Pardo de Tavera
Third, lytic agents in the blood serum may play the chief rle in the liberation of the toxic agent from its non-toxic combination.
Handbook of Medical EntomologyWilliam Albert Riley
toxic
- of, relating to, or caused by a toxin or poison; poisonous
- harmful or deadly
- (of a financial asset) likely to cause significant loss to the holder
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Word Origin for toxic
C17: from medical Latin toxicus, from Latin toxicum poison, from Greek toxikon (pharmakon) (poison) used on arrows, from toxon arrow
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
Word Origin and History for non-toxic
toxic
1660s, from French toxique, from Late Latin toxicus "poisoned," from Latin toxicum "poison," from Greek toxikon (pharmakon) "(poison) for use on arrows," from toxikon, neuter of toxikos "pertaining to arrows or archery," and thus to a bow, from toxon "bow," probably from a Scythian word that also was borrowed into Latin as taxus "yew."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
toxic
(tŏk′sĭk)- Of, relating to, or caused by a toxin or other poison.
- Capable of causing injury or death, especially by chemical means; poisonous.
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- A toxic chemical or other substance.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
toxic
[tŏk′sĭk]
- Relating to or caused by a toxin.
- Capable of causing injury or death, especially by chemical means; poisonous.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.