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paregoric

American  
[par-i-gawr-ik, -gor-] / ˌpær ɪˈgɔr ɪk, -ˈgɒr- /

noun

Pharmacology.

  1. a camphorated tincture of opium, containing benzoic acid, anise oil, etc., used chiefly to stop diarrhea in children.

  2. any soothing medicine; anodyne.

adjective

  1. Archaic. assuaging pain; soothing.

paregoric British  
/ ˌpærəˈɡɒrɪk /

noun

  1. a medicine containing opium, benzoic acid, camphor (English paregoric) or ammonia (Scottish paregoric), and anise oil, formerly widely used to relieve diarrhoea and coughing in children

"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

Etymology

Origin of paregoric

1675–85; < Late Latin parēgoricus < Greek parēgorikós soothing, equivalent to parḗgor ( os ) pertaining to consolatory speech (equivalent to par- par- + -ēgor-, combining form of agorā́ agora 1 + -os adj. suffix) + -ikos -ic

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.

Diarrhea, I told our friend the doctor, who didn’t give me paregoric, prescribed tea and apple.

From The New Yorker • Jul. 28, 2016

Epsom salts, cold pills, a bottle of paregoric, ink eradicator, adhesive-tape remover, vitamin pills.

From Time Magazine Archive

Typical is the young graduate who in 1932 arrived in Fayetteville, Tenn. with bottles of paregoric and liniment, a roll of gauze, pair of scissors, $1 cash, a diploma.

From Time Magazine Archive

As the note struck, an expression of paregoric bliss passed over his infant features.

From Time Magazine Archive

“Only that big? It felt like a house. Look, dear,” said Faye, “open that second drawer where my medicine is. Bring the paregoric and a piece of cotton. Will you help me pack this tooth?”

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

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.