pharmacist
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of pharmacist
First recorded in 1825–35; pharmac(y) + -ist
Explanation
When you're sick and need prescription medication, it's a pharmacist who prepares it for you, answers your questions about it, and sells it to you. You can also ask your pharmacist to recommend the best over-the-counter cough drops. If you decide to be a pharmacist, you'll need to study pharmacy, a field of science that's all about making and dispensing safe medicine that works the way it's supposed to. Pharmacists take a lot of chemistry classes to understand how drugs work, and they also study human anatomy and physiology to learn about the way people's bodies react to medicine. In some places, your pharmacist can also give you vaccinations.
Vocabulary lists containing pharmacist
Pharmacy Words
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -ist
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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.
But he has been told by his pharmacist multiple times that they have no aspirin in stock.
From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026
“They had to decide between their safety and their family,” said Shahrzad Shirkhanzadeh, a 25-year-old Iranian-born Australian pharmacist who helped the women get advice from a lawyer.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026
"Half of our young people are now considering illegal migration," said village pharmacist Refaat Abdelsamad, 40.
From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026
Newport-based pharmacist Geoff Thomas has worked in the industry for 40 years and warned things are "heading off a cliff", unless there is serious change.
From BBC • Feb. 12, 2026
He identified himself as a doctor and licensed pharmacist and asked the woman if she needed assistance in her store.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
