pharmaceutical
Americanadjective
noun
-
pharmaceuticals
plural
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
nonpharmaceuticadjective
-
nonpharmaceuticaladjective
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nonpharmaceuticallyadverb
-
pharmaceuticallyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of pharmaceutical
First recorded in 1640–50; pharmaceutic(s) + -al 1
Explanation
A pharmaceutical is any kind of drug used for medicinal purposes, like cough syrup or sleeping pills. You may have heard of a pharmacy, which is a place where you can buy medicinal drugs, or a pharmacist, which is a person who prepares those drugs. In general, a pharmaceutical is anything related to pharmacies or pharmacists, though it especially refers to the kinds of medicines that they sell. Pharmaceuticals are often contrasted with what are called recreational drugs, which are the illegal kind that are generally used for entertainment purposes rather than to help heal the body.
Vocabulary lists containing pharmaceutical
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for November 12–November 18, 2022
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for May 11–May 17, 2025
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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.
See Examples For:
Walmart also cited a negative effect from a price cap on 10 top-selling pharmaceutical products due to new US rules that went into effect January 1.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
The Cambridge-based pharmaceutical company said Monday that the decision is based on the recommendation of the Independent Data Monitoring Committee after a planned review of trial data.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
As a student of pharmaceutical technology Promise said he has always wanted to help sick people in Nigeria.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Li, the company's vice president, claimed these were based on standards used in the pharmaceutical industry.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
She accompanied her husband to his doctor’s appointments and retained pharmaceutical dosages in her head.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
"He had been tried on cocktails of anti-epileptic pharmaceuticals and they just weren't working" Charlotte said.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Last year, Americans spent $915 billion on pharmaceuticals — that’s more than the gross domestic product of Ireland.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
Roche Holding ROP -0.42%decrease; red down pointing triangle backed its full-year guidance as its pharmaceuticals division helped drive a first-half rise in sales.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Danish pharmaceuticals heavyweight Novo Nordisk said Tuesday it is suing its arch US rival, Eli Lilly, over "false and materially misleading" adverts for their competing weight-loss and anti-diabetes treatments.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Tony’s business interests are diverse: waste management, luxury auto exports, pharmaceuticals, etc.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
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.
