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narcotic antagonist

narcotic antagonist

6.1
A drug that stops the effects of strong pain medicines and helps breathing
  • noun
  • /nɑrˈkɑtɪk ænˈtæɡənɪst/
  • Specialized
translation icon : antagonista narcótico
  • Naloxone is a well-known narcotic antagonist that quickly blocks the effects of opioids.

Examples

  • The doctor administered a narcotic antagonist to reverse the patient's opioid overdose.

  • A longer-acting narcotic antagonist, naltrexone, was approved for use in 1984.

    Academic text (1993)
  • In cases of overdose, a narcotic antagonist is essential to restore normal breathing.

Synonyms

Narcan
vsnarcotic antagonist
  • Specialized
9 4.2

A medicine used to quickly reverse an overdose from drugs like heroin

is the nonbrand term for the same rapid reversal medicine
naloxone
vsnarcotic antagonist
  • Specialized
4 6.7

A drug that quickly stops the effects of an overdose from drugs like heroin or morphine

is a broader term for drugs that reverse opioid overdose effects
naltrexone
vsnarcotic antagonist
  • Specialized
3 9.3

A medicine taken by mouth that blocks the effect of drugs like heroin and helps people stop drinking alcohol

is focused on rapid overdose reversal rather than long term oral blocking
nalorphine
vsnarcotic antagonist
  • Archaic
9.9

A medicine that stops the effects of an overdose of strong pain medicines like morphine

is broader, reversing breathing suppression from many opioid overdoses
levallorphan
vsnarcotic antagonist
  • Specialized
9.9

A drug that stops breathing problems from an overdose of a strong pain medicine while keeping pain relief

is broader, reversing opioid breathing problems beyond pain-sparing cases

Antonyms

narcotic
  • NSFW
125 6.6

A strong drug used for severe pain that can make a person numb and cause addiction

Surface Forms

Morphology

narcotic + antagonist

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'narcotic' (a drug) with 'antagonist' (something that opposes or blocks action): a substance that opposes the effects of narcotics. Although the term is technical, the noun+noun composition follows a regular, cross-linguistically common pattern, so a learner who knows both constituents would be able to infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Narcotic antagonist puts together narcotic, a strong pain drug that can make breathing slow, and antagonist, something that fights or blocks the drug. Picture a helper that fights the narcotic and brings breathing back, so it 'reverses' the drug's dangerous effects in an overdose.