variants
or pedo-
or paed-
or paedo-
: child
pediatric
: childhood
paedogenesis
PED
3 of 4abbreviation or noun
plural PEDs
: performance-enhancing drug
PEDs can turn a marginal player into a major leaguer, and transform a marginal major leaguer into an All-Star.—
Dave DeLand
Dave DeLand… has never tested positive for using PEDs, but is under investigation by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency …—Andre Williams
Andre WilliamsExamples of ped in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 4 Mar. 2026
According to The Athletic, the positive PED test happened during the offseason.
—Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2026
Baseball’s all-time home runs leader Barry Bonds and pitching legend Roger Clemon would be first-ballot Hall of Famers if they had not been implicated in PED scandals.
—Merlisa Lawrence Corbett, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Before his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for prostitution, Epstein donated more than $9 million to Harvard, including a $6.5-million gift to Harvard’s Program for Evolutionary Dynamics (PED), led by mathematician Martin Nowak.
—Dan Vergano, Scientific American, 20 Jan. 2026
Power-hitting outfielder Barry Bonds, whose historic career was also tainted by accusations of PED use, is being considered this year by the committee.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 7 Dec. 2025
Despite challenges, including a PED suspension that forced him to miss the entire 2021 season while with the Mets, Canó’s passion for the game remains undiminished.
—Denny Alfonso, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
While some of those numbers were perhaps inflated by PED use, there's no doubt that Ramírez was born to hit.
—Shaun McAvoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
Like the Phillies, they were weakened by a key player — ex-Padre Jurickson Profar — being suspended 80 games for flunking a PED test.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Aug. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Abbreviation or noun
News of the outfielder’s (alleged) positive PED test and his (pending) full-season suspension hit with all the tenderness of a two-buck tenderloin.
—Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 4 Mar. 2026
According to The Athletic, the positive PED test happened during the offseason.
—Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2026
Baseball’s all-time home runs leader Barry Bonds and pitching legend Roger Clemon would be first-ballot Hall of Famers if they had not been implicated in PED scandals.
—Merlisa Lawrence Corbett, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Before his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for prostitution, Epstein donated more than $9 million to Harvard, including a $6.5-million gift to Harvard’s Program for Evolutionary Dynamics (PED), led by mathematician Martin Nowak.
—Dan Vergano, Scientific American, 20 Jan. 2026
Power-hitting outfielder Barry Bonds, whose historic career was also tainted by accusations of PED use, is being considered this year by the committee.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 7 Dec. 2025
Despite challenges, including a PED suspension that forced him to miss the entire 2021 season while with the Mets, Canó’s passion for the game remains undiminished.
—Denny Alfonso, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
While some of those numbers were perhaps inflated by PED use, there's no doubt that Ramírez was born to hit.
—Shaun McAvoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
Like the Phillies, they were weakened by a key player — ex-Padre Jurickson Profar — being suspended 80 games for flunking a PED test.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ped.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ped. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
PED
abbreviation or noun
: a performance enhancing drug : a substance (such as an anabolic steroid or human growth hormone) that is used illicitly especially to improve athletic performance
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
