poison
Americannoun
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a substance with an inherent property that tends to destroy life or impair health.
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something harmful or pernicious, as to happiness or well-being.
the poison of slander.
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Slang. any variety of alcoholic liquor.
Name your poison!
verb (used with object)
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to administer poison to (a person or animal).
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to kill or injure with or as if with poison.
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to put poison into or upon; saturate with poison.
to poison food.
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to ruin, vitiate, or corrupt.
Hatred had poisoned his mind.
- Synonyms:
- taint, pollute, contaminate
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Chemistry. to destroy or diminish the activity of (a catalyst or enzyme).
adjective
noun
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any substance that can impair function, cause structural damage, or otherwise injure the body
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something that destroys, corrupts, etc
the poison of fascism
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a substance that retards a chemical reaction or destroys or inhibits the activity of a catalyst
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a substance that absorbs neutrons in a nuclear reactor and thus slows down the reaction. It may be added deliberately or formed during fission
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informal what would you like to drink?
verb
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to give poison to (a person or animal) esp with intent to kill
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to add poison to
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to taint or infect with or as if with poison
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(foll by against) to turn (a person's mind) against
he poisoned her mind against me
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to retard or stop (a chemical or nuclear reaction) by the action of a poison
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to inhibit or destroy (the activity of a catalyst) by the action of a poison
Usage
What does poison mean? A poison is a substance that causes bodily harm or destroys health, The vile was filled with a deadly poison. In this sense, poison can be used as a verb to mean to give poison to a living thing, as in The farmer poisoned his rival’s sheep. Poison can also mean to harm or kill a living thing with poison, as in The king died because he had been poisoned by one of his own knights. And poison can mean to add poison to something, as in The knight poisoned the king’s wine to achieve his wicked goal. More generally, poison can be used to refer to any harmful or corruptive thing, as in Trevor was doomed by the poison of gambling. In this sense, you can use poison as a verb as well, as in Isabelle’s mind was poisoned by the lies contained in the forbidden books. Finally, poison can be used as an adjective to mean something that can cause poisoning, as in There are many poison plants in the woods. Something that contains poison is said to be poisonous, as in He went to the hospital after being bitten by a poisonous spider. Example: Because we handle chemicals that are dangerous poisons in our lab, we take many safety precautions.
Synonym Usage
Poison, toxin, venom are terms for any substance that injures the health or destroys life when absorbed into the system, especially of a higher animal. Poison is the general word: a poison for insects. A toxin is a poison produced by an organism; it is especially used in medicine in reference to disease-causing bacterial secretions: A toxin produces diphtheria. Venom is especially used of the poisons secreted by certain animals, usually injected by bite or sting: the venom of a snake.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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poisonernoun
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poisonlessnessnoun
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self-poisonernoun
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outpoisonverb (used with object)
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poisonlessadjective
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unpoisonedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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poisonsimple
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poisonssimple
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have poisonedperfect
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has poisonedperfect
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am poisoningprogressive
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are poisoningprogressive
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is poisoningprogressive
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have been poisoningperfect progressive
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has been poisoningperfect progressive
Past
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poisonedsimple
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had poisonedperfect
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was poisoningprogressive
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were poisoningprogressive
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had been poisoningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of poison
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English puisun, from Old French, from Latin pōtiōn- (stem of pōtiō ) “drink, potion, poisonous draught.” See potion.
Explanation
Poison is a substance that can harm or even kill you. Arsenic and cyanide are both types of poison—so stay away from them! Mean people can also be poison, so stay away from them too. Poison refers to the harmful substance itself, or the act of giving it to someone. Poison often shows up in murder mysteries because it’s a sneaky way to get rid of someone. We also use poison metaphorically for things that tend to ruin something. A really obnoxious friend who always insists that he knows more than everyone else might poison the atmosphere at a dinner party. Jealousy can poison a good relationship.
Vocabulary lists containing poison
"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act V
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Words from Shakespearean Insults
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Beowulf vocabulary
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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:
The final installment, published Friday, described succession as “the poison at the heart of LVMH.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Research has found acetamiprid can poison honey bees, affecting their foraging capacity and memory, while a 2024 study suggested flupyradifurone could be lethal to some bees.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Before 2021, poison control centers nationwide typically handled between 1,000 and 1,500 GLP-1RA related cases each year.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
Ripping out the poison of antisemitism, restoring trust on the economy, defence, and national security.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
What if she was safe from the poison tide?
From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown
The soil is packed with poisons, and massive dust storms obscure the sun for months.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 19, 2026
But then he enacts the scene in which Iago subtly poisons Othello’s mind into believing that his wife is having an affair with a handsome lieutenant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 17, 2026
Andrea was a dental hygienist and a mother-of-one, Nicola - a poisons information specialist and toxicologist - had two children and Morgan was an assistant supermarket manager and trainee firefighter.
From BBC ● Apr. 25, 2025
There can also be an associated increase in potassium found in the blood stream, which further poisons the heart.
From Salon ● Apr. 10, 2025
One thing that is interesting is that lots of poisons taste sweet.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
Scores of protesters marched a mile from the site of the hazardous blaze to the meeting, chanting as they walked that the warehouse had poisoned their community and they wanted it removed permanently.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
If you are poisoned by milk, you can sue the manufacturer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
Leo condemned "a deadly mix of obscure interests and indifference toward the common good, which has poisoned the natural and social environment".
From Barron's ● May 23, 2026
Thirteen of the dead wolves were taken to the institute in Teramo, which found the "presence of pesticides for agriculture used in poisoned bait for animals".
From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2026
Its branches bowed, heavy with the weight of poisoned fruit.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
In 2020, he announced that he had been severely ill as a result of lithium poisoning: a treatment aimed at stabilising his moods.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
“I told him, you know, you got to stop these fires from coming in and poisoning our air,” said Trump.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026
Another possibility is lead poisoning, according to the San Dimas rescue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
“I told them, I mean, you got to stop these fires from coming in and you know poisoning our air,” Trump said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
In one of the most tragic cases of endrin poisoning there was no apparent carelessness; efforts had been made to take precautions apparently considered adequate.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
