performance-enhancing drug

noun

: a substance (such as an anabolic steroid, human growth hormone, or erythropoietin) that is used illicitly to improve athletic performance

In the United States, more than 1 million elite and recreational athletes use performance-enhancing drugs for muscle building purposes.

—Josiah D. Rich et al.

…33 of the 48 major and minor league players suspended by baseball for using performance-enhancing drugs since the start of 2006 were pitchers.

—Sean Gregory

Roger Bannister, the first person to run a subpar four-minute mile, said today he thought that increased use of blood testing could help curb the use of performance-enhancing drugs by track and field athletes.

—The New York Times

—abbreviation PED

Examples of performance-enhancing drug in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bonds has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs during his career. —Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 10 Dec. 2025

Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, who were not elected during their 10 years on the BBWAA ballot due to their association with performance-enhancing drugs, will be up for consideration by the Contemporary Era committee for the second time. —Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 7 Dec. 2025

The results show that Angelica has toxic levels of vitamin A, which is rare but could have any number of causes — including performance-enhancing drugs. —Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Nov. 2025

Victor Conte, the architect of a scheme to provide undetectable performance-enhancing drugs to professional athletes including baseball stars Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi and Olympic track champion Marion Jones decades ago, has died. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 4 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1973, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for performance-enhancing drug

• antidrug
• mealybug
• multidrug
• chug
• doug
• dug
• hug
• jug
• lug
• mug
• plug
• pug