pharmacy

noun

phar·​ma·​cy ˈfär-mə-sē 

plural pharmacies

1

: the art, practice, or profession of preparing, preserving, compounding, and dispensing medical drugs

2

a

: a place where medicines are compounded or dispensed

b

: drugstore

3

: pharmacopoeia sense 2

Synonyms of pharmacy

• drugstore

Examples of pharmacy in a Sentence

There's a pharmacy in our grocery store now.

She's studying pharmacy at the university.

Recent Examples on the Web

Meanwhile, compounding pharmacies that sell cheaper knockoffs of these products are disrupting the marketplace. —Christopher Rowland The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 21 Mar. 2026

Even for Jentadueto, patients typically pay about $25 to $35 at the pharmacy counter for the generic — meaning the TrumpRx price is still competitive, Link said. —Berkeley Lovelace Jr, NBC news, 20 Mar. 2026

Joyce, the guardian of the 5-year-old boy, has struggled to find a steady supply of the drug since December, bouncing between two pharmacies to fill the prescription. —Michal Ruprecht, NPR, 16 Mar. 2026

Some of us have a medicine cabinet that looks less like a pharmacy and more like a museum. —Trisha Pasricha, Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin pharmacia administration of drugs, from Greek pharmakeia, from pharmakeuein to administer drugs, from pharmakon magic charm, poison, drug

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

pharmacy

noun

phar·​ma·​cy ˈfär-mə-sē 

plural pharmacies

1

: the art, practice, or profession of preparing drugs according to a doctor's prescription

2

a

: a place where medicines are made or distributed

b

: drugstore

Medical Definition

pharmacy

noun

phar·​ma·​cy ˈfär-mə-sē 

plural pharmacies

1

: the art, practice, or profession of preparing, preserving, compounding, and dispensing medical drugs

2

a

: a place where medicines are compounded or dispensed

a hospital pharmacy

b

: drugstore

3

: pharmacopoeia sense 2