pharmacist

noun

phar·​ma·​cist ˈfär-mə-sist 

: a health care professional licensed to engage in pharmacy with duties including dispensing prescription drugs, monitoring drug interactions, administering vaccines, and counseling patients regarding the effects and proper usage of drugs and dietary supplements

Synonyms

• chemist [British]

Examples of pharmacist in a Sentence

the pharmacist caught an error in the prescription's dosage

Recent Examples on the Web

Achor is a pharmacist who has served in the state House of Representatives since 2023. —Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2025

Some state laws also prevent pharmacists from administering vaccines that haven’t been recommended by ACIP—a snarl that’s prompted pharmacies to limit access to COVID vaccines in more than a dozen states. —Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 5 Sep. 2025

Already, there have been rapid responses with states changing their policies to ensure pharmacists can provide vaccines, and states making alliances with other states to provide vaccine recommendations and vaccines themselves. —Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 5 Sep. 2025

Pharmacies are unable to administer COVID-19 vaccines in Massachusetts, Nevada, and New Mexico, where state laws don't allow any pharmacists to give a vaccination not recommended by ACIP. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1721, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

pharmacist

noun

phar·​ma·​cist ˈfär-mə-səst 

: one trained in pharmacy

Medical Definition

pharmacist

noun

phar·​ma·​cist ˈfär-mə-səst 

: a health-care professional licensed to engage in pharmacy with duties including dispensing prescription drugs, monitoring drug interactions, administering vaccines, and counseling patients regarding the effects and proper usage of drugs and dietary supplements