1
a
: a usually iced drink of wine or distilled liquor mixed with flavoring ingredients
b
: something resembling or suggesting such a drink as being a mixture of often diverse elements or ingredients
a cocktail of remembered incidents and pure imagination—
Charlotte Low
Charlotte Lowa cocktail of herbicides
c
: a mixture of agents usually in solution that is taken or used especially for medical treatment or diagnosis
2
: an appetizer served as a first course at a meal
1
: of, relating to, or set aside for cocktails
a cocktail hour
2
: designed for semiformal wear
a cocktail dress
: a horse with its tail docked
Examples of cocktail in a Sentence
Noun (1)
an autopsy found a lethal cocktail of banned substances in the actor's body
Recent Examples on the Web
Karri Peifer, Axios, 26 Feb. 2025
The cocktails will highlight rum culture, especially at the eye-catching bar, the centerpiece of the main dining room.
—Connie Ogle, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2025
Think meat and seafood entrees, sandwiched by an appetizer menu featuring shrimp cocktail, arancini, and an impressive wine list.
—Lydia Mansel, Southern Living, 25 Feb. 2025
Poker Face stars Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale, a former casino cocktail waitress who has an uncanny ability to tell when people are lying.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cocktail
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Noun
As with the group's other restaurants (like Fat Dragon, PBR and Wong's Tacos), the cocktails are fun and funky, and the weekday happy hour deals stellar.
—Karri Peifer, Axios, 26 Feb. 2025
The cocktails will highlight rum culture, especially at the eye-catching bar, the centerpiece of the main dining room.
—Connie Ogle, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2025
Think meat and seafood entrees, sandwiched by an appetizer menu featuring shrimp cocktail, arancini, and an impressive wine list.
—Lydia Mansel, Southern Living, 25 Feb. 2025
Poker Face stars Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale, a former casino cocktail waitress who has an uncanny ability to tell when people are lying.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cocktail
Articles Related to cocktail
Cite this Entry
“Cocktail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cocktail. Accessed 5 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
cocktail
noun
cock·tail
ˈkäk-ˌtāl 
: a mixture of agents usually in solution that is taken or used especially for medical treatment or diagnosis
a potent cocktail of antiretroviral drugs—Zia Jaffrey
Zia Jaffreychemotherapy cocktails to treat cancer—J. L. Swerdlow
J. L. SwerdlowLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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