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Apothecary

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a⋅poth⋅e⋅car⋅y

[uh-poth-uh-ker-ee]
–noun, plural -car⋅ies.
1. a druggist; a pharmacist.
2. a pharmacy or drugstore.
3. (esp. in England and Ireland) a druggist licensed to prescribe medicine.

Origin:
1325–75; ME (< OF) < ML apothēcārius seller of spices and drugs, LL: shopkeeper, equiv. to L apothēc(a) shop, storehouse (< Gk apothkē; see apo-, theca ) + -ārius -ary
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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a·poth·e·car·y   (ə-pŏth'ĭ-kěr'ē)   
n.   pl. a·poth·e·car·ies
  1. One that prepares and sells drugs and other medicines; a pharmacist.

  2. See pharmacy.


[Middle English apotecarie, from Old French apotecaire and from Medieval Latin apothēcārius, both from Late Latin, clerk, from Latin apothēca, storehouse, from Greek apothēkē : apo-, away; see apo- + thēkē, receptacle; see dhē- in Indo-European roots.]
phar·ma·cy   (fär'mə-sē)   
n.   pl. phar·ma·cies
  1. The art of preparing and dispensing drugs.

  2. A place where drugs are sold; a drugstore. Also called apothecary.


[Middle English farmacie, a purgative, from Old French, from Medieval Latin pharmacīa, a medicine, from Greek pharmakeia, use of drugs, from pharmakon, drug.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

apothecary 
1366, "shopkeeper," from O.Fr. apotecaire (13c.), from L.L. apothecarius "storekeeper," from L. apotheca "storehouse," from Gk. apotheke "storehouse," lit. "a place where things are put away," from apo- "away" (see apo-) + tithenai "to put," from PIE base *dhe- "to put, to do" (see factitious). Cognate compounds produced Skt. apadha- "concealment," O.Pers. apadana- "palace." Drugs and herbs being among the chief items of non-perishable goods, the meaning narrowed 17c. to "druggist" (Apothecaries' Company of London separated from the Grocers' in 1617). Same root produced Fr. boutique and Sp. bodega.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: apoth·e·cary
Pronunciation: &-'päth-&-"ker-E
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -car·ies
1 : a person who prepares and sells drugs or compounds for medicinal purposes : DRUGGIST,PHARMACIST
2 : PHARMACY 2a
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

apothecary a·poth·e·car·y (ə-pŏth'ĭ-kěr'ē)
n. pl. a·poth·e·car·ies
Abbr. ap.

  1. One that prepares and sells drugs and other medicines; a pharmacist.

  2. See pharmacy.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Bible Dictionary

Apothecary

rendered in the margin and the Revised Version "perfumer," in Ex. 30:25; 37:29; Eccl. 10:1. The holy oils and ointments were prepared by priests properly qualified for this office. The feminine plural form of the Hebrew word is rendered "confectionaries" in 1 Sam. 8:13.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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