toxic
Americanadjective
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of, pertaining to, affected with, or caused by a toxin or poison.
a toxic condition.
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acting as or having the effect of a poison; poisonous.
a toxic drug.
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causing unpleasant feelings; harmful or malicious: toxic criticism.
a toxic boyfriend who wanted complete control over her;
toxic criticism.
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Finance.
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pertaining to or noting debt that will probably not be repaid.
toxic mortgages.
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pertaining to or noting a financial instrument or other asset that has no value or an unknown value because there is no market for it.
toxic mortgage-backed securities.
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noun
adjective
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of, relating to, or caused by a toxin or poison; poisonous
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harmful or deadly
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(of a financial asset) likely to cause significant loss to the holder
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Relating to or caused by a toxin.
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Capable of causing injury or death, especially by chemical means; poisonous.
Other Word Forms
- hypertoxic adjective
- nontoxic adjective
- nontoxically adverb
- posttoxic adjective
- toxically adverb
- untoxic adjective
- untoxically adverb
Etymology
Origin of toxic
First recorded in 1655–65; from Late Latin toxicus “poisonous,” derivative of toxicum “poison,” from Greek toxikón (for toxikòn phármakon literally, “bow poison,” i.e., poison used on arrows), equivalent to tóx(on) “bow” + -ikon, neuter of -ikos adjective suffix; -ic
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.
As the lake shrinks, wind blowing across the exposed lakebed kicks up toxic dust left by years of agriculture chemicals and metals washing into the lake.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
Some strands include binders that recognize cancer markers, while another carries a toxic drug.
From Science Daily • Apr. 2, 2026
Ricin, a highly toxic chemical, is a poison found naturally in castor beans.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
“Nope. Elon is toxic and I want nothing to do with him.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026
Mother avoids the subdivision as if it were a toxic waste dump.
From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg
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.
