/ prɪˈskrɪpʃn; NAmE / noun
1.
[ C ] prescription (for sth) an official piece of paper on which a doctor writes the type of medicine you should have, and which enables you to get it from a chemist's shop / drugstore :
The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics.
( BrE )
Antibiotics are only available on prescription .
( NAmE )
Antibiotics are only available by prescription .
They are not available without a prescription.
prescription drugs / medication(s)
2.
[ C ] medicine that your doctor has ordered for you :
The pharmacist will make up your prescription.
a prescription charge (= in Britain, the money you must pay for a medicine your doctor has ordered for you)
3.
[ U ] the act of prescribing medicine :
The prescription of drugs is a doctor's responsibility.
4.
[ C ] prescription (for sth) ( formal ) a plan or a suggestion for making sth happen or for improving it :
a prescription for happiness
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (as a legal term): via Old French from Latin praescriptio(n-) , from the verb praescribere direct in writing, from prae before + scribere write. Senses 1 to 3 date from the late 16th cent.