poison pill

noun

: a financial tactic or provision used by a company to make an unwanted takeover prohibitively expensive or less desirable

Examples of poison pill in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Money in politics has been a poison pill for the democracy in our city. Destiny Torres, Orange County Register, 4 Oct. 2024 But the measure, paired with what Democrats see as a poison pill on noncitizen voting, faces headwinds in the lower chamber. Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2024 That was introduced as a poison pill very late to the game. Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2024 The non-citizen voting measure, known as the SAVE Act, is a partisan poison pill that does not belong in a bill to keep the government funded. Andrew Solender, Axios, 10 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for poison pill 

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

Word History

First Known Use

1983, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of poison pill was in 1983

Dictionary Entries Near poison pill

Cite this Entry

“Poison pill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poison%20pill. Accessed 30 Oct. 2024.

Legal Definition

poison pill

noun
poi·​son pill
: a financial tactic or provision used by a company to make an unwanted takeover prohibitively expensive or less desirable
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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