Skip to main content
pharmaceutical company

pharmaceutical company

43 3.4
A business that finds, makes and sells medicines like pills and vaccines
  • noun
  • /ˌfɑːrməˈsuːtɪkəl ˈkʌmpəni/
translation icon : empresa farmacéutica
  • After years of research, the pharmaceutical company finally released a medication for the rare disease.
  • large pharmaceutical companies
  • several pharmaceutical companies
  • pharmaceutical companies produce

And here's the other thing I'll say, I don't trust pharmaceutical companies and their agenda.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • - Who do you work for? - A pharmaceutical company.

  • We love this pharmaceutical company at work.

  • Our large domestic pharmaceutical companies, at least until very recently, have been very successful.

    Academic text (1993)
  • At 50, she works as an interior designer, while her husband is a salesman for a pharmaceutical company.

    Academic text (2001)
  • Her husband was a brilliant researcher for one of France's best pharmaceutical companies.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • In light of an uncertain market outlook, pharmaceutical companies have taken a cautious approach to pharmacogenomics.

    Academic text (2006)
  • The pharmaceutical company developed a new vaccine that has shown promising results in clinical trials.

  • Many pharmaceutical companies are investing heavily in research to find cures for various illnesses.

Synonyms

drug company
vspharmaceutical company
52 2.6

A company that makes and sells medicines like vaccines and pills

also includes research and development alongside production and sales
pharma
vspharmaceutical company
  • Jargon
19 5.8

Companies that make and sell medicines

is specifically a single company focused on research, development, and sales
drugmaker
vspharmaceutical company
6 3.2

A company or person that makes medicines

operates as an established firm doing research, development, production, and sales

How Big

big pharma
  • Literature
5 5.1
pharmaceutical company
43 3.4
drugmaker
6 3.2

Surface Forms

Morphology

pharmaceutical + company

The phrase is fully compositional: 'pharmaceutical' means relating to medicinal drugs and 'company' means an organization, so together they denote an organization that produces or sells medicines. This adjective+noun pattern is a common, transparent formation in English (and parallels many other languages), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Pharmaceutical company comes from the idea of making 'medicines': think of pharmaceutical as making cures and company as a business, so imagine a small shop that mixes herbs for healing turned into a large business that makes medicines for many people. That's why pharmaceutical company means a business that develops and sells 'medicines'.