prescription

[pri-skrip-shuhn]

noun

1. Medicine/Medical.

   1. a direction, usually written, by the physician to the pharmacist for the preparation and use of a medicine or remedy.

   2. the medicine prescribed.

      Take this prescription three times a day.

2. an act of prescribing.

3. that which is prescribed.

4. Law.

   1. Also called positive prescription. a long or immemorial use of some right with respect to a thing so as to give a right to continue such use.

   2. Also called positive prescription. the process of acquiring rights by uninterrupted assertion of the right over a long period of time.

   3. Also called negative prescription. the loss of rights to legal remedy due to the limitation of time within which an action can be taken.

adjective

1. (of drugs) sold only upon medical prescription; ethical.

prescription

/ prɪˈskrɪpʃən /

noun

1. 1. written instructions from a physician, dentist, etc, to a pharmacist stating the form, dosage strength, etc, of a drug to be issued to a specific patient

   2. the drug or remedy prescribed

2. (modifier) (of drugs) available legally only with a doctor's prescription

3. 1. written instructions from an optician specifying the lenses needed to correct defects of vision

   2. ( as modifier )

      prescription glasses

4. the act of prescribing

5. something that is prescribed

6. a long established custom or a claim based on one

7. law

   1. the uninterrupted possession of property over a stated period of time, after which a right or title is acquired ( positive prescription )

   2. the barring of adverse claims to property, etc, after a specified period of time has elapsed, allowing the possessor to acquire title ( negative prescription )

   3. the right or title acquired in either of these ways

Word History and Origins

Origin of prescription¹

1250–1300; Middle English < Medieval Latin praescrīptiōn- (stem of praescrīptiō ) legal possession (of property), law, order, literally, a writing before, hence, a heading on a document. See prescript, -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of prescription¹

C14: from legal Latin praescriptiō an order, prescription; see _prescribe

Example Sentences

Treatment typically involved a prescription for a stimulant, such as Ritalin, but parents weren’t thrilled.

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The book is heavy on bold-face prescription and relatively light on argument and anecdote, so it’s more of a flip-through than a sit-down.

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That could have included residential rehabilitation, community-based treatment, detoxification, substitute prescriptions or any other treatment recommended by a health professional.

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By examining stool samples and prescription data from more than 2,500 participants in the Estonian Biobank’s Microbiome cohort, scientists discovered that most drugs they analyzed were associated with measurable changes in the gut microbiome.

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Meanwhile, health-insurance plans may not approve experimental treatments, prescription medications used to treat conditions not listed on the label or services that don’t meet the insurer’s requirements for being medically necessary.

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Related Words

• drug 
• instruction 
• recipe 
• remedy