medicine
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GC: n

S: WHO – http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2004/pr44/en/ (last access: 1.05.2017); MEDNT – https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323679 (last access: 13 January 2024).

N: 1. c. 1200, “medical treatment, cure, remedy,” also used figuratively, of spiritual remedies, from Old French medicine (Modern French médecine) “medicine, art of healing, cure, treatment, potion,” from Latin medicina “the healing art, medicine; a remedy,” also used figuratively, perhaps originally ars medicina “the medical art,” from fem. of medicinus (adj.) “of a doctor,” from medicus “a physician”; though Oxford English Dictionary finds evidence for this is wanting. Meaning “a medicinal potion or plaster” in English is mid-14c.
To take (one’s) medicine “submit to something disagreeable” is first recorded 1865. North American Indian medicine-man “shaman” is first attested 1801, from American Indian adoption of the word medicine in sense of “magical influence.” The U.S.-Canadian boundary they called Medicine Line (first attested 1910), because it conferred a kind of magic protection: punishment for crimes committed on one side of it could be avoided by crossing over to the other. Medicine show “traveling show meant to attract a crowd so patent medicine can be sold to them” is American English, 1938. Medicine ball “stuffed leather ball used for exercise” is from 1889.
2. Medicine, the practice concerned with the maintenance of health and the prevention, alleviation, or cure of disease.
3. Collocations:
(science of treating/preventing illness)

  • Adj. modern advances in modern medicine | traditional qualified in traditional Chinese medicine | folk Garlic was widely used in folk medicine. | conventional, orthodox | alternative, complementary, holistic, homeopathic | preventative, preventive | academic, clinical, forensic, scientific | general She gave up general medicine to specialize in geriatric medicine. | geriatric, obstetric, paediatric, veterinary, etc. | Chinese, Western | private, public health She believed private medicine was a threat to the existence of the National Health Service.
  • Verb + medicine: train in | qualify in | practise people practising alternative medicine.
  • Phrases: a branch of medicine.

(substance taken to treat an illness)

  • Adj. powerful, strong | cough a bottle of cough medicine | herbal | prescription.
  • Quant. dose.
  • Verb + medicine: take | swallow | prescribe (sb) | administer, give sb | treat sb with.
  • Medicine + noun: bottle, chest.
  • Prep. ~ for medicine for a chest infection.

4. Cultural Interrelation: We can mention The Hippocratic Corpus.

S: 1. OED – http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=medicine (last access: 1 May 2017). 2. EncBrit – https://global.britannica.com/topic/medicine (last access: 1 May 2017). 3. OD – http://oxforddictionary.so8848.com/search1?word=medicine (last access: 1 May 2017). 4. http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucgajpd/medicina%20antiqua/sa_hippint.html (last access: 1 May 2017).

SYN:
S:

CR: drug product, fentanyl, health, infusion, medical examiner, mental health, medication, physician.