opium
[oh-pee-uh m]
- the dried, condensed juice of a poppy, Papaver somniferum, that has a narcotic, soporific, analgesic, and astringent effect and contains morphine, codeine, papaverine, and other alkaloids used in medicine in their isolated or derived forms: a narcotic substance, poisonous in large doses.
- anything that causes dullness or inaction or that soothes the mind or emotions.
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Origin of opium
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin < Greek ópion poppy juice, equivalent to op(ós) sap, juice + -ion diminutive suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for opium
Contemporary Examples
And almost no event plays a larger role in that identity as a victim than the Opium Wars.
In 2011, Iran accounted for 80 per cent of the opium seizures in the world, and 30 percent of the heroin seizures.
Before the war, international rules were established to try and curtail the opium trade in the east.
In the end, the big question this book deals with is: What forces led to the prohibition of opium?
I want a dressing gown made from it, to inspire my opium dreams.
Historical Examples
The Opium trade, perhaps beneficially, brought matters to a crisis.
The effect was like that of opium, and gave the user visions.
The Trail BookMary Austin
For every box of opium sold, the mate got a china dollar as a perquisite.
Ned MyersJames Fenimore Cooper
The purchaser then brought, or sent, an order on board the ship, for the delivery of the opium.
Ned MyersJames Fenimore Cooper
The opium that I had taken in my potion made my head rather heavy.
My Double LifeSarah Bernhardt
opium
- the dried juice extracted from the unripe seed capsules of the opium poppy that contains alkaloids such as morphine and codeine: used in medicine as an analgesic
- something having a tranquillizing or stupefying effect
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Word Origin
C14: from Latin: poppy juice, from Greek opion, diminutive of opos juice of a plant
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 opium
n.
late 14c., from Latin opium, from Greek opion "poppy juice, poppy," diminutive of opos "vegetable juice."
Die Religion ist der Seufzer der bedrängten Kreatur, das Gemüth einer herzlosen Welt, wie sie der Geist geistloser Zustände ist. Sie ist das Opium des Volks. [Karl Marx, "Zur Kritik der Hegel'schen Rechts-Philosophie," in "Deutsch-Französische Jahrbücher," February, 1844]
The British Opium War against China lasted from 1839-42; the name is attested from 1841.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
opium
(ō′pē-əm)- A bitter, yellowish-brown, strongly addictive narcotic drug prepared from the dried juice of unripe pods of the opium poppy and containing alkaloids such as morphine, codeine, and papaverine.meconium
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
opium
[ō′pē-əm]
- A highly addictive, yellowish-brown drug obtained from the pods of a variety of poppy, from which other drugs, such as morphine, are prepared.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
opium
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.