patent medicine

noun

: a nonprescription medicinal preparation that is typically protected by a trademark and whose contents are incompletely disclosed

also : any drug that is a proprietary

Note: Patent medicine is often used to refer to a product (such as an elixir, tonic, or liniment) that was marketed as a medicine in the U.S. during the 1800s and early 1900s but was typically of unproven effectiveness and questionable safety.

Examples of patent medicine in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Originally from Atlanta, Georgia, the soft drink was initially sold at pharmacies as a patent medicine. —Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 29 Sep. 2025

The school, which occupied a massive home that patent medicine entrepreneur and Civil War surgeon Col. George G. Green built for his daughter in 1912, was full of intact original details, like decorative tiles in the faculty bathroom, bronze sconces in the hallways and an old intercom system. —Marah Eakin, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2025

His point was that the pills — a patent medicine used as a laxative — and the other three would all reliably deliver for the poor folks of the Mountain State. —Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 7 Feb. 2025

But one American industry is still keeping the spirit of patent medicine alive: dietary supplements. —Shayla Love, The Atlantic, 30 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1770, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for patent medicine

• biomedicine
• telemedicine

Kids Definition

patent medicine

noun

: a medicine (as cough syrup) available for sale to the public without a doctor's prescription, that is protected by a trademark, has contents which may not be fully disclosed, and especially in the past was often of unproven effectiveness

Medical Definition

patent medicine

noun

pat·​ent medicine

ˈpat-ᵊnt-, British usually ˈpāt-

: a nonprescription medicinal preparation that is typically protected by a trademark and whose contents are incompletely disclosed

also : any drug that is a proprietary

Note: Patent medicine is often used to refer to a product (as an elixir, tonic, or liniment) that was marketed as a medicine in the U.S. during the 1800s and early 1900s but was typically of unproven effectiveness and questionable safety.

Legal Definition

patent medicine

noun

: a packaged nonprescription drug which is protected by a trademark and whose contents are incompletely disclosed

also : any drug that is a proprietary