Synonyms

talcum powder

American

[tal-kuhm] / ˈtæl kəm /

noun

a powder made of purified, usually perfumed talc, for toilet purposes.

talcum powder British

/ ˈtælkəm /

noun

Often shortened to: talc. a powder made of purified talc, usually scented, used for perfuming the body and for absorbing excess moisture

"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

Etymology

Origin of talcum powder

1885–90; < Medieval Latin talcum talc

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:

talcum powder

J&J said Monday it has agreed to settle the remaining suits accusing the company’s talcum powder of causing ovarian cancer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

A welcome exception came last Thursday when federal magistrate judge Rukhsanah Singh disqualified Beasley Allen from representing plaintiffs in the multidistrict litigation against Johnson & Johnson claiming injuries from talcum powder.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026

Footage of the event showed several people trying to restrain the pair as they sprayed the stones with a mix of cornflour, talcum powder and orange dye.

From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2025

Packed in my picnic basket beside my chair, Banana Cake joined me while watching sunsets on some of the most beautiful, sugar white, talcum powder soft beaches in the world.

From Salon ● Apr. 25, 2025

Her tongue sticks out a little bit between her lips, and she smells sort of like vanilla extract and talcum powder.

From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023