■ verb
1》 advise and authorize the use of (a medicine or treatment), especially in writing.
↘recommend as beneficial.
2》 state authoritatively that (something) should be done in a particular way.
Derivatives
prescribable adjective
~r noun
Origin
ME (in the senses 'confine within bounds, claim by prescription'): from L. praescribere 'direct in writing', from prae 'before' + scribere 'write'.
Usage
The verbs ~ and proscribe do not have the same meaning. Prescribe is a much commoner word and means either ‘issue a medical prescription’ or ‘recommend with authority’, as in the doctor ~d antibiotics . Proscribe , on the other hand, means ‘condemn or forbid’, as in gambling was strictly proscribed by the authorities .