toxicology
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of toxicology
Explanation
Toxicology is the field that studies poisons, especially how poisons work and how to treat them. If you’re writing a true crime story, you should study toxicology to know what happens when the villain poisons the victim’s tea. Mwah ha ha. Have you ever seen a label that said "toxic"? That means that substance will harm you. Toxicology — which is a branch of pharmacology — has to do with toxic substances (poisons). It comes from the Greek word for “arrow poison.” Not all poisons come at the end of an arrow, though. If a toxicology report is done on a dead person, it will reveal if they had any dangerous substances in them, such as illegal drugs or drain cleaner.
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.
Postmortem tests revealed toxicology results for all three sisters were negative for drugs and alcohol.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
L.A. attorney Brian Claypool, who handles wrongful death litigation, said the autopsy and toxicology results “will be crucial in this tragic death to ascertain legal liability.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
Most previous toxicology research involving honeybees has centered on worker bees.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026
Police said a toxicology report was being fast-tracked to identify the cause of death.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Once again, no thorough toxicology exam was performed.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
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