bath salts

plural noun

1

: a usually colored crystalline compound for perfuming and softening bathwater

2

: any of various synthetic illicit drugs with stimulant and sometimes hallucinogenic properties that are used (as by being injected or snorted) typically in the form of a white or brown crystalline powder

Examples of bath salts in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In bathrooms, use jars for cotton balls and bath salts to create a spa-like atmosphere. —Ashlyn Needham, The Spruce, 15 Apr. 2026

Encourage mom to take a moment for herself this Mother’s Day with a fancy set of bath salts. —Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 14 Apr. 2026

Beginning in 2010, emergency rooms began seeing agitated patients who were violent, paranoid and psychotic after ingesting synthetic cathinones sold as bath salts. —Jonathan Corum, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026

My favorite corner housed the freestanding soaking tub, where Blue Lagoon bath salts sit on a side table for easy access. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for bath salts

• asphalts
• assaults
• basalts
• defaults
• exalts
• faults
• halts
• malts
• vaults
• waltz
• somersaults
• thunderbolts

Medical Definition

bath salts

noun plural

1

: a usually colored crystalline compound for perfuming and softening bathwater

2

: any of various synthetic, illicit, stimulant drugs that contain derivatives of cathinone (such as MDPV) and are typically sold as white or brown crystalline powders

Los Angeles County health officials warned Tuesday against the use of bath salts—the designer drug involved in a series of bizarre incidents and arrests—just one week after a new study charted a skyrocketing number of calls to U.S. poison control centers about the drug.

—Wesley Lowery, The Los Angeles Times

—sometimes singular

Although the man was later proven to not be under the influence of bath salt, the incident nonetheless brought the drug national attention.

—Lauren McGaughy, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, Louisiana)