Definition of toxic
1 : containing or being poisonous material especially when capable of causing death or serious debilitation toxic waste a toxic radioactive gas an insecticide highly toxic to birds
2 : exhibiting symptoms of infection or toxicosis the patient became toxic two days later
3 : extremely harsh, malicious, or harmful toxic sarcasm
4 : relating to or being an asset that has lost so much value that it cannot be sold on the market
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Examples of toxic in a Sentence
The fumes from that chemical are highly toxic.
Tests will be run to determine if the landfill is toxic.
Origin and Etymology of toxic
Late Latin toxicus, from Latin toxicum poison, from Greek toxikon arrow poison, from neuter of toxikos of a bow, from toxon bow, arrow
Other Biology Terms
toxic
Definition of toxic
: a toxic substance —usually used in plural
Examples of toxic in a Sentence
tested for toxics in the water supply
First Known Use of toxic
1890
toxic-
toxico-
Definition of toxic-
: poison toxicology
Origin and Etymology of toxic-
New Latin, from Latin toxicum
TOXIC Defined for English Language Learners
toxic
playDefinition of toxic for English Language Learners
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: containing poisonous substances
TOXIC Defined for Kids
toxic
playDefinition of toxic for Students
: containing, being, or caused by poisonous or dangerous material toxic waste toxic effects
History for toxic
Sometimes people put poison on the points of arrows. Even a slight wound from such an arrow can be fatal. The ancient Greeks referred to arrow poison as toxikon, short for toxikon pharmakon, literally, “bow drug” (from toxos, “bow”). As Latin toxicum, the word was applied more generally to any poison. The English word toxic comes from this Latin word.
Medical Dictionary
Medical Definition of toxic
1: containing or being poisonous material especially when capable of causing serious injury or death toxic drugs toxic gas
2: of, relating to, or caused by a poison or toxin toxic liver damage
3a: affected by a poison or toxinb: affected with toxemia of pregnancy toxic pregnant women
toxic
Medical Definition of toxic
: a toxic substance
Law Dictionary
toxic
playLegal Definition of toxic
1 : containing or being poisonous material especially when capable of causing death or serious debilitation
2 : having substantially lowered worth; specifically : relating to or being an asset that has lost so much value that it cannot be sold on the market toxic assets toxic subprime loans
Learn More about toxic
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for toxic Spanish Central: Translation of toxic Nglish: Translation of toxic for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of toxic for Arabic speakers
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