toxic

[tok-sik]

adjective

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.

noun

a toxic chemical or other substance.

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

Related formstox·i·cal·ly, adverbhy·per·tox·ic, adjectivenon·tox·ic, adjectivenon·tox·i·cal·ly, adverbpost·tox·ic, adjectiveun·tox·ic, adjectiveun·tox·i·cal·ly, adverb

Can be confusedtoxic toxin

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, tame

Examples 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 Philippines
T. 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 Entomology
William Albert Riley

British Dictionary definitions for non-toxic

toxic

adjective

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

Derived Formstoxically, adverb

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

adj.

also nontoxic, 1892, from non- + toxic.

toxic

adj.

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."

non-toxic in Medicine