10 results for: nostrum
nos·trum
Audio Help [nos-truh
m] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [nos-truh
m] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a medicine sold with false or exaggerated claims and with no demonstrable value; quack medicine. |
| 2. | a scheme, theory, device, etc., esp. one to remedy social or political ills; panacea. |
| 3. | a medicine made by the person who recommends it. |
| 4. | a patent medicine. |
[Origin: 1595–1605; < L nostrum our, ours (neut. sing. of noster); referring to the seller's calling the drug “our” drug
]
] | Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
nostrum
To learn more about nostrum visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| nos·trum
Audio Help (nŏs'trəm) Pronunciation Key
n.
[From Latin nostrum (remedium), our (remedy), neuter of noster; see nes-2 in Indo-European roots.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
nostrum
"quack medicine," 1602, from L. nostrum remedium "our remedy," presumably that prepared by the person offering it, from L. nostrum, neut. of noster "our," from nos "we," from PIE *nos (see us).
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| nostrum | |
noun | |
| 1. | hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases; once sought by the alchemists [syn: panacea] |
| 2. | patent medicine whose efficacy is questionable |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
- A medicine whose effectiveness is unproved and whose ingredients are usually secret; a quack remedy.
| The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. |
Main Entry: nos·trum
Pronunciation: 'näs-tr&m
Function: noun
: a medicine of secret composition recommended by its preparer but usually
without scientific proof of its effectiveness
| Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc. |
Nostrum
Nos"trum\ (-tr[u^]m), n.; pl. Nostrums (-tr[u^]mz). [Neut. sing. of L. noster ours, fr. nos we. See Us.]1. A medicine, the ingredients of which are kept secret for the purpose of restricting the profits of sale to the inventor or proprietor; a quack medicine. 2. Any scheme or device proposed by a quack. The incentives of agitators, the arts of impostors and the nostrums of quacks. --Brougham.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Nostrum
Us\, pron. [OE. us, AS. ?s; akin to OFries. & OS. ?s, D. ons, G. uns, Icel. & Sw. oss, Dan. os, Goth. uns, L. nos we, us, Gr. ? we, Skr. nas us. ????. Cf. Nostrum, Our.] The persons speaking, regarded as an object; ourselves; -- the objective case of we. See We. "Tell us a tale." --Chaucer. Give us this day our daily bread. --Matt. vi. 11.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
nostrum
nostrum was Word of the Day on October 10, 2000.
| Dictionary.com Word of the Day |
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