medicine

[ med-uh-sinor, especially British, med-suhn ]

noun

1. any substance or substances used in treating disease or illness; medicament; remedy.

   Synonyms: physic, pharmaceutical, drug, medication

2. the art or science of restoring or preserving health or due physical condition, as by means of drugs, surgical operations or appliances, or manipulations: often divided into medicine proper, surgery, and obstetrics.
3. the art or science of treating disease with drugs or curative substances, as distinguished from surgery and obstetrics.
4. the medical profession.
5. (among North American Indians) any object or practice regarded as having magical powers.

verb (used with object)

, med·i·cined, med·i·cin·ing.

1. to administer medicine to.

medicine

/ ˈmɛdsɪn; ˈmɛdɪsɪn /

noun

1. any drug or remedy for use in treating, preventing, or alleviating the symptoms of disease
2. the science of preventing, diagnosing, alleviating, or curing disease
3. any nonsurgical branch of medical science
4. the practice or profession of medicine Aesculapianiatric

   he's in medicine

5. something regarded by primitive people as having magical or remedial properties
6. take one's medicine
   to accept a deserved punishment
7. a taste of one's own medicine or a dose of one's own medicine
   an unpleasant experience in retaliation for and by similar methods to an unkind or aggressive act

medicine

/ mĕd′ĭ-sĭn /

1. The scientific study or practice of diagnosing, treating, and preventing diseases or disorders of the body or mind of a person or animal.
2. An agent, such as a drug, used to treat disease or injury.

Other Words From

• anti·medi·cine adjective
• super·medi·cine noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of medicine¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English medicin, from Latin medicīna (ars) “healing (art),” feminine of medicīnus “pertaining to a physician,” from medic(us) “physician” ( medical ) + -īnus -ine ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of medicine¹

C13: via Old French from Latin medicīna ( ars ) (art of) healing, from medicus doctor, from medērī to heal

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. give someone a dose / taste of his / her own medicine, to repay or punish a person for an injury by use of the offender's own methods.
2. take one's medicine, to undergo or accept punishment, especially deserved punishment:

   He took his medicine like a man.

More idioms and phrases containing medicine

see dose of one's own medicine ; take one's medicine .

Example Sentences

Information on cardiovascular medicines was obtained from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register.

From Science Daily

At a later date, all of the volunteers were given either a single dose of prescribed sodium-oxybate liquid medicine or a dummy or placebo.

From BBC

"Now we can co-opt this same strategy to advance our efforts to build synthetic multicellular structures -- and eventually tissues and organs -- for regenerative medicine."

From Science Daily

And the Iron Curtain, of course, divided biology and medicine as starkly as it did politics and cultures.

From Salon

A mum with kids requiring refrigerated medicines for cancer rang up with her voice cracking because she could not afford her £5 prepayment top-up and asked to be put onto a credit direct debit.

From BBC

Related Words

• antibiotic
• cure
• drug
• medication
• pharmaceutical
• pill
• prescription
• remedy