tranquilizer

American  

[trang-kwuh-lahy-zer] / ˈtræŋ kwəˌlaɪ zər /

Or tranquillizer

noun

tranquilizers plural

1. a person or thing that tranquilizes.

2. a drug that has a sedative or calming effect without inducing sleep.

3. antianxiety drug.

4. antipsychotic.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• tranquilizers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tranquilizer

First recorded in 1790–1800; tranquilize + -er ¹

Explanation

A medication that's used to relax patients is called a tranquilizer. If someone suffers from severe anxiety, their doctor might prescribe a tranquilizer. The word tranquilizer is commonly used for anti-anxiety or anti-psychotic drugs, but it's not the term most medical professionals use. They are much more likely to use sedative, neuroleptic, or anxiolytic for a calming medication. Tranquilizer, from tranquility or "the state of being calm," was first used for sedatives in 1824, and for anti-anxiety drugs in 1954.

Example Sentences

The young intern who shot us with a tranquilizer dart and then inserted that inexact analysis apologizes.

From Slate • Jun. 13, 2026

But in modern practice, “The Life of Chuck” is no more than a nostalgia tranquilizer, designed to comfort you after you roll your ankle on a two-step, dancing like no one’s watching.

From Salon • Jun. 15, 2025

You’d have needed a tranquilizer gun to keep him from chasing after the next story, and the next, and he was still telling stories until his death in 2015.

From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2025

A rhino targeted for moving was not subdued by a tranquilizer dart shot from a helicopter.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 16, 2024

The panda refused to be lured into the transport cage, so a tranquilizer dart was used.

From "Camp Panda" by Catherine Thimmesh

Related Words

• opiate
• sedative