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Showing results for stimulant. Search instead for stimulant+drug.
Synonyms

stimulant

American  
[stim-yuh-luhnt] / ˈstɪm yə lənt /

noun

  1. Physiology, Medicine/Medical. something that temporarily quickens some vital process or the functional activity of some organ or part.

    Adrenalin is a stimulant for the heart.

  2. any food or beverage that stimulates, especially coffee, tea, or, in its initial effect, alcoholic liquor.

  3. a stimulus or incentive.

adjective

  1. Physiology, Medicine/Medical. temporarily quickening some vital process or functional activity.

  2. stimulating.

stimulant British  
/ ˈstɪmjʊlənt /

noun

  1. a drug or similar substance that increases physiological activity, esp of a particular organ

  2. any stimulating agent or thing

"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

adjective

  1. increasing physiological activity; stimulating

"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
stimulant Scientific  
/ stĭm′yə-lənt /

  1. An agent, especially a drug, that causes increased activity, especially of the nervous or cardiovascular systems. Caffeine is a commonly used stimulant.

Other Word Forms

  • antistimulant adjective
  • nonstimulant noun

Etymology

Origin of stimulant

First recorded in 1720–30, stimulant is from the Latin word stimulant- (stem of stimulāns, present participle of stimulāre to goad). See stimulus, -ant

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.

“It is a terrific stimulant of a sense of urgency.”

From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026

For decades, stimulant medications have been thought to work by directly influencing brain regions responsible for attention.

From Science Daily • Dec. 29, 2025

The school told Gansky’s mother that the girl should see a psychiatrist, who diagnosed her with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, and prescribed a stimulant.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025

More than 10 traders were arrested last Friday in the main coastal city of Mombasa as the ban on the stimulant took effect, local media reported.

From BBC • May 28, 2024

Tea it might as well be called; brewed from roasted permgrain, orsh is a brown, sweetsour drink, strong in vitamins A and C, sugar, and a pleasant stimulant related to lobeline.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

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.