Definition

1. Noun:
   • A large pill, especially used in veterinary medicine: A single, solid dose of medication, typically spherical or oval, often given to animals.
   • A small, round, soft mass, especially of chewed food: A rounded lump of a substance, particularly food that has been chewed and is ready to be swallowed.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Large Pill):
  • The veterinarian administered a bolus to the horse.
  • The antibiotic is available as a bolus for cattle.
• Noun (Soft Mass):
  • He formed the chewed bread into a bolus before swallowing.
  • The process of digestion begins when a bolus of food enters the stomach.

Advanced Usage

• Medical/Veterinary Context: In medicine, "bolus" can also refer to a single, relatively large volume of a substance (like a drug or contrast agent) given intravenously over a short period.
  • The patient received an intravenous bolus of the pain medication.
• Technical/Scientific Context: Used in fields like radiology or pharmacology to describe a concentrated dose or a compact mass.
  • A bolus of contrast material was injected for the CT scan.

Variants and Related Words

• Boli (n): Plural form of bolus (less common; "boluses" is more frequent).
  • The vet prepared several boluses for the herd.
• Bolus Dose (n): A specific term in pharmacology for a single, large dose.
  • The treatment started with a bolus dose.

Synonyms

• Pill: A small round mass of solid medicine.
• Tablet: A compressed solid dose of medicine.
• Wad: A small, soft mass of material (informal, for the "soft mass" sense).
• Lump: A compact mass of a substance.

Related Phrases/Idioms

(This word is highly technical/specific and does not commonly appear in idiomatic expressions or phrasal verbs.)

Noun

1. a large pill; used especially in veterinary medicine
2. a small round soft mass (as of chewed food)