noun
1 substance used as a medicine
ADJECTIVE
▪ powerful , strong
▪ effective
▪ safe
▪ modern , new
▪ wonder
▪
They're hailing it as the new wonder ~.
▪ anti-cancer , anti-inflammatory , anti-malarial , antiviral , etc.
▪ sedative
▪ psychoactive
▪
More and more children are being prescribed psychoactive ~s.
▪ prescription
▪
You used to be able to buy this medicine over the counter, but it is now a prescription ~.
▪ non-prescription , over-the-counter
▪ generic
▪
We want to make it possible for African companies to produce cheaper generic ~s.
▪ brand-name ( esp. AmE )
▪ performance-enhancing
▪
an athlete who tested positive for performance-enhancing ~s
… OF DRUG
▪ course , dose
VERB + DRUG
▪ be on , take
▪
Are you taking any other ~s at present?
▪ prescribe (sb) , put sb on
▪
The doctor put me on anti-inflammatory ~s.
▪ give sb , treat sb with
▪ administer , give sb
▪
The nurses came around to give the patients their ~s.
▪ develop , manufacture , produce
▪
new ~s that have been developed recently
▪ market
▪ test
▪ approve
▪
Some veterinary ~s are not approved for use in food-producing animals.
▪ be resistant to , not respond to
▪
Some infections are now resistant to ~s.
DRUG + VERB
▪ cure sth , help sth , treat sth
▪
~s that help the growth of skin tissue
DRUG + NOUN
▪ company
▪ prices
▪
Prescription ~ prices rose.
PREPOSITION
▪ ~ against
▪
a powerful ~ against tuberculosis
▪ ~ for
▪
He's taking ~s for depression.
2 illegal substance
ADJECTIVE
▪ illegal , illicit
▪ addictive
▪ hallucinogenic , mood-altering , psychoactive , psychotropic
▪ class A , dangerous , hard
▪
heroin and other hard ~s
▪ soft
▪
Some addicts start on soft ~s.
▪ designer (= artificially produced)
▪
She had taken a new designer ~.
▪ recreational
▪
They had a liberal attitude to recreational ~s.
VERB + DRUG
▪ inject (See note for more verbs.)
DRUG + NOUN
▪ baron , kingpin ( esp. AmE ), lord
▪ pusher
▪ cartel
▪ misuse
▪ screening , testing
▪
Some workplaces have introduced mandatory ~ screening.
▪ ~ offense ( AmE ), ~s offence ( BrE )
▪ ~ charge ( esp. AmE ), ~s charge ( BrE )
▪ sentencing ( esp. AmE )
▪
a review of the ~ sentencing laws to make penalties harsher
▪ ~ squad , ~s squad (both BrE )
▪ ~ czar ( AmE ), ~s tsar ( BrE )
▪
The new federal ~ czar claimed the nation was winning the war on drugs.
▪
the government's former ~s tsar
▪ war
▪
the latest moves in the ~ war
(See note for more nouns.)
PHRASES
▪ drink and ~s ( BrE ), ~s and alcohol ( esp. AmE )
▪
the dangers of ~s and alcohol
◆◆◆
NOTE: Illegal drugs
▪ do … ( informal ), experiment with … , take … , try … , use …
▪
She confessed to having experimented with drugs in her youth.
▪ be/get high on …
▪
They committed the crime while high on drugs.
▪ be addicted to … , be dependent on … , be/get hooked on … ( informal )
▪
bodybuilders who are addicted to steroids
▪ be on … ( informal )
▪
He seemed to be on acid most of the time.
▪ be off … , come off …
▪
He's tried several times to come off cocaine.
▪ possess …
▪
She was arrested on charges of possessing narcotics.
▪ deal … , deal in … , sell … , smuggle … , supply … , traffic … , traffic in …
▪
The country imposes the death penalty for trafficking in marijuana.
▪ seize …
▪
The heroin seized has an estimated street value of £600 000.
▪ … abuse , … addiction , … consumption , … use
▪
Heroin abuse has increased sharply.
▪ … habit ( informal ), … problem
▪
She allegedly has a $500-a-day coke habit.
▪ … overdose
▪
Heroin overdose is a major cause of death among users.
▪ … addict , … user
▪
heroin users
▪ … dealer , … trafficker , … smuggler
▪
a cocaine dealer
▪ … production , … smuggling , … trade , … trafficking
▪
The authorities have been accused of active involvement in the narcotics trade.
▪ abuse of … , addiction to … , dependence on … , use of …
▪
the use of cocaine
▪ trade in …
▪
measures to combat the trade in narcotics