physic
3
9.9
- noun
- /ˈfɪzɪk/
- Archaic
- The doctor prescribed a gentle physic to help with the patient's constipation.
- doses of physic
- mild doses of physic
- doctor of physic
Examples
-
Market gardens flourished in and around London, and physic gardens in Chelsea and Oxford dispensed medicinal herbs.
Academic text (2011) -
You see I have given her physic.
-
Give me me physic, I say.
-
- Best physic anybody ever had.
-
And my illness is so far advanced that my physic must be of the highest quality.
-
When I was a kid, my grandmother's cure for all maladies was a physic.
Fiction book (1992) -
According to Wesley, he wrote his medical manual, Primitive Physic (1747), out of an absolute necessity to provide physic to the poor.
Academic text (2004) -
In common with other Anglican clergymen, Wesley felt a compulsion, obligation, and duty to practice physic.
Academic text (2004) -
In ancient times, a powerful physic was necessary to clear the body of toxins.
-
He trusted the herbalist's physic to relieve his digestive issues.
Synonyms
1
8.1
A medicine that makes a person empty their bowels
1
8.5
A medicine that makes you empty your bowels quickly
1
9.9
A medicine that makes the bowels move gently to relieve mild constipation
Compounds
A tall plant that lives many years with spikes of small white or purple flowers
- Specialized
A small tropical tree whose seeds have a toxic oil used for dye and tanning
How Strong
Surface Forms
Etymology
Physic comes from an old Greek word that means 'nature' and the same root is in physician and physics. So a physic was a medicine meant to set the body's 'nature' right, which is why it often meant a strong medicine like a laxative.