Definition

1. Noun:

   • Medicine, medicament, drug: A substance prepared and used to prevent or treat illness or disease.
   • Powder: A substance in fine, dry particles, often used in specific contexts like gunpowder or dye.
   • Tobacco, opium: Processed leaves or sap from certain plants, used for smoking.

2. Verb (colloquial):

   • To poison: To kill or harm using a toxic substance.
   • To entice, to sweet-talk: To coax or seduce someone through flattery or deception.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • Bác sĩ kê đơn thuốc kháng sinh. (The doctor prescribed antibiotic medicine.)
  • Anh ta mua thuốc nhuộm tóc. (He bought hair dye.)
  • Ông ấy hút thuốc lá. (He smokes tobacco.)

• Verb:

  • Kẻ gian thuốc chết mấy con chó. (The villain poisoned several dogs to death.)
  • Nó bị bạn bè thuốc cho hết tiền. (He was sweet-talked by his friends out of all his money.)

Advanced Usage

• "thuốc" meaning "medical science" (archaic):

  • Ông ấy học thuốc ở Pháp. (He studied medicine in France.)

• "thuốc" in fixed compounds for specific substances:

  • Thuốc trừ sâu: pesticide.
  • Thuốc đánh răng: toothpaste.
  • Thuốc nổ: explosive.

Variants and Related Words

• Thuốc men (n): Medicines, medication (general term).

  • Đi mua ít thuốc men dự phòng. (Go buy some medication for backup.)

• Dược phẩm (n): Pharmaceutical product (more formal term for medicine).

• Bào chế thuốc (v): To compound/prepare medicine.

Synonyms

• Medicine: A compound used for medical treatment.
• Drug: A substance used as a medicine or narcotic.
• Poison: A substance that causes harm or death.
• Entice: To attract or persuade.

Related Idioms

• Thuốc đắng dã tật: Bitter medicine cures disease. (Meaning: Harsh truths or difficult actions are sometimes necessary for improvement.)

  • Phải nghe lời phê bình, thuốc đắng dã tật mà. (You must listen to the criticism, it's bitter medicine that cures the disease.)

• Ăn thuốc lào: To smoke strong tobacco from a water pipe. (Implies experiencing something intense or shocking.)

  • Nghe tin đó, tôi tưởng như ăn thuốc lào. (Hearing that news, I felt like I had smoked strong tobacco [i.e., was stunned].)

noun

1. medicine, medicament, drug powder

verb

1. to poison to entice