early 15c., medicacioun, "medical treatment of a disease or wound," from Old French médication and directly from Latin medicationem (nominative medicatio) "healing, cure," noun of action from past-participle stem of medicare, medicari "to medicate, heal, cure" (poetic and Late Latin) from medicus "physician; healing" (from PIE root *med- "take appropriate measures"). Meaning "a medicinal substance or product" is by 1942.
"to treat medicinally," 1620s, a back-formation from medication, or else from Late Latin medicatus, past participle of medicare, medicari "to medicate, heal, cure" (poetic and Late Latin) from medicus "physician; healing" (from PIE root *med- "take appropriate measures"). Related: Medicated; medicating. The earlier verb in English was simply medicinen (late 14c.).
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "take appropriate measures."
It forms all or part of: accommodate; accommodation; commode; commodious; commodity; empty; immoderate; immodest; Medea; medical; medicament; medicaster; medicate; medication; medicine; medico; medico-; meditate; meditation; Medusa; meet (adj.) "proper, fitting;" mete (v.) "to allot;" modal; mode; model; moderate; modern; modest; modicum; modify; modular; modulate; module; modulation; mold (n.1) "hollow shape;" mood (n.2) "grammatical form indicating the function of a verb;" must (v.); premeditate; premeditation; remedial; remediation; remedy.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit midiur "I judge, estimate;" Avestan vi-mad- "physician;" Greek mēdomai "be mindful of," medesthai "think about," medein "to rule," medon "ruler;" Latin meditari "think or reflect on, consider," modus "measure, manner," modestus "moderate," modernus "modern," mederi "to heal, give medical attention to, cure;" Irish miduir "judge;" Welsh meddwl "mind, thinking;" Gothic miton, Old English metan "to measure out."
trade name for prescription medication Zolpidem, which is used to treat insomnia, registered 1993 in U.S., no doubt suggested by ambient or words like it in French.
"tending to produce sleep," 1680s, from French soporifique (17c.), formed in French from Latin sopor (genitive soporis) "deep sleep" (from PIE root *swep- "to sleep"). As a noun, "substance or medication which induces sleep," from 1722. Earlier as an adjective was soporiferous (1580s as "characterized by excessive sleep," c. 1600 as "soporific"); soporous "causing deep sleep" also is from 1680s..
1610s, "deductive reasoning," from Latin synthesis "collection, set, suit of clothes, composition (of a medication)," from Greek synthesis "composition, a putting together," from syntithenai "put together, combine," from syn- "together" (see syn-) + tithenai "to put, to place," from reduplicated form of PIE root *dhe- "to set, put." From 1733 as "a combination of parts into a whole." Earlier borrowed in Middle English as sintecis (mid-15c.). Plural syntheses.
late 14c., preservatif, "tending to keep safe, sound, or free from harm," from Old French preservatif and directly from Medieval Latin praeservativus, from stem of Late Latin praeservare "guard beforehand" (see preserve (v.)).
The noun is from early 15c., "a preservative medication; substance that preserves corpses," also generally "anything that preserves or maintains." The sense of "chemical added to foods to keep them from rotting" is from 1875.
c. 1200, "something added to food or drink to enhance the flavor, vegetable substance aromatic or pungent to the taste," also "a spice used as a medication or an alchemical ingredient," from Old French espice (Modern French épice), from Late Latin species (plural) "spices, goods, wares," in classical Latin "kind, sort" (see species). From c. 1300 as "an aromatic spice," also "spices as commodities;" from early 14c. as "a spice-bearing plant." Figurative sense of "attractive or enjoyable variation" is from 13c.; that of "slight touch or trace of something" is recorded from 1530s. Meaning "specimen, sample" is from 1790. Early druggists recognized four "types" of spices: saffron, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg.
