pharmacy
Americannoun
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pharmacies
plural
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Also called pharmaceutics. the art and science of preparing and dispensing drugs and medicines.
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a drugstore.
noun
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Also called: pharmaceutics. the practice or art of preparing and dispensing drugs
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a dispensary
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pharmacy
1645–55; earlier pharmacia < Medieval Latin < Greek pharmakeía druggist's work. See pharmaco-, -y 3
Explanation
A pharmacy is where you go when you need to fill a prescription for medicine. Hospitals have pharmacies, but you can also find retail pharmacies in most cities and towns. The technique of making medicine and dispensing it is also known as pharmacy, and people who practice this kind of science are pharmacists. If your doctor diagnoses an infection, it's your friendly neighborhood pharmacist who measures your antibiotics, packages them for you, and instructs you on how much and how often to take them. The Greek root is pharmakeia, which means "medicines or cure," but also "witchcraft, spells, or potions."
Vocabulary lists containing pharmacy
Unit 4
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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:
Sovaldi was a truly amazing breakthrough, and we want the biotech and pharmacy industry to continue its impressive track record of pursuing innovative new therapeutics.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
"My first choice is to study medicine at Glasgow uni, and my insurance is pharmacy at Newcastle," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
His pharmacy sold its entire order of 200 pairs within a week.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
Later that month, ICE awarded multimillion dollar no-bid contracts to two companies tasked with taking over claims processing: Acentra Health for healthcare services and Ardent Group for pharmacy services.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
The shampoos and lotions and balms that used to be at the back of the store I shift to shelves near the pharmacy, so that people filling prescriptions can also buy plasters and ointments.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
Eli Lilly is suing six pharmacies alleging that they are selling illegal versions of retatrutide, its still-experimental but highly anticipated weight-loss shot.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
The scramble for protective glasses has reached fever pitch across Europe ahead of Wednesday's rare total solar eclipse, as pharmacies, opticians and other shops struggled to keep them in stock.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
But recently, an FDA committee voted to recommend that compounding pharmacies be allowed to manufacture six different peptides already widely available online: BPC-157, TB-500, KPV, epitalon, Semax and MOTS-c.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Those treatments also may be available for same-day pickup at CVS pharmacies, the company said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
“I had to go to three different pharmacies to find one of these.”
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
