medicate

verb

med·​i·​cate ˈme-di-ˌkāt How to pronounce medicate (audio)
medicated; medicating

transitive verb

1
: to treat (someone or something) with or as if with medicine
medicate a condition
was medicated for pain/depression
… is happily living his life one day at a time since he stopped drinking and otherwise medicating himself …Charles Leerhsen
2
: to impregnate with a medicinal substance
medicated soap

Examples of medicate in a Sentence

The patient had been heavily medicated.
Recent Examples on the Web Most abortions last year were medicated, according to one study. Chelsea Brasted, Axios, 1 Oct. 2024 Amelia, frightened by her son’s behavior, is forced to medicate him. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 13 Sep. 2024 According to prosecutors, the Bureau of Prisons previously considered involuntarily medicating Coleman under a different law. Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 June 2024 In one, patients were confined to a locked unit and heavily medicated. Diana Kwon, Scientific American, 1 Jan. 2022 See all Example Sentences for medicate 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'medicate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin medicatus, past participle of medicare to heal, from medicus

First Known Use

circa 1623, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of medicate was circa 1623

Dictionary Entries Near medicate

Cite this Entry

“Medicate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/medicate. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.

Medical Definition

medicate

transitive verb
med·​i·​cate ˈmed-ə-ˌkāt How to pronounce medicate (audio)
medicated; medicating
1
: to treat medicinally
2
: to impregnate with a medicinal substance
medicated soap

More from Merriam-Webster on medicate

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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