✨📕 The NEWThe NEW Collegiate Dictionary, 12th Edition Over 5,000 words added — Buy Now! Collegiate DictionaryBuy Now!

beta-blocker

noun

be·​ta-block·​er ˈbā-tə-ˌblä-kər How to pronounce beta-blocker (audio)
: any of a class of drugs (such as propranolol) that decrease the rate and force of heart contractions and lower high blood pressure by blocking the activity of beta-receptors
beta-blocking adjective

Examples of beta-blocker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Combined alpha- and beta-blockers are used for the treatment of heart failure; they are sometimes prescribed for treating a hypertensive crisis. Craig O. Weber, Verywell Health, 4 Dec. 2025 People with chronic kidney disease, or those taking beta-blockers or potassium-sparing diuretics, may also need to moderate their intake of high-potassium foods like sweet potatoes and yams. Daryl Austin, USA Today, 30 Nov. 2025 The team also identified a link between taking beta-blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers and calcium-channel blockers – all drugs commonly used to treat heart disease or hypertension – and higher rates of severe negative side-effects. New Atlas, 9 Nov. 2025 Molecules that cling tighter Filling this research gap, a team led by Professor Yuhoon Hwang from Seoul National University of Science and Technology (SeoulTech) studied FCOPs as potential adsorbents for beta-blockers. Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2025 Participants were assigned to either take a beta-blocker or not, within two weeks of leaving the hospital. Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 4 Sep. 2025 Why would women be more susceptible to harm from beta-blockers than men? Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2025 Some analysts have said aficamten has the potential to replace metoprolol, which belongs to a class of drugs called beta-blockers, as the first treatment given to patients with the heart condition. Bhanvi Satija, Reuters, 30 Aug. 2025 But beta-blockers may be a promising treatment, the research shows. Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of beta-blocker was in 1965

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Beta-blocker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beta-blocker. Accessed 9 Dec. 2025.

Medical Definition

beta-blocker

noun
be·​ta-block·​er -ˈbläk-ər How to pronounce beta-blocker (audio)
: any of a group of drugs (as propranolol) that combine with and block the activity of a beta-receptor to decrease the heart rate and force of contractions and lower high blood pressure and that are used especially to treat hypertension, angina pectoris, and ventricular and supraventricular arrhythmias compare alpha-blocker

More from Merriam-Webster on beta-blocker

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!