prescription

prescription — noun

IPA/prɪˈskrɪpʃn/
KK[prəskrˈɪpʃən]IPA/prɪˈskrɪpʃn/
  • prescriptionsingular
  • prescriptionsplural

1. an official slip of paper, or a digital record, where a doctor lists the exact m

1.nounB1
Definition

an official slip of paper, or a digital record, where a doctor lists the exact medicine or treatment a patient should be given, so a pharmacist can supply it.

Example

Dr. Tanaka wrote Maya a prescription for antibiotics after checking her sore throat.

write someone a prescription for [medicine]

Carlos took the prescription to the pharmacy on the corner of Main Street.

Common collocations
  • write a prescription
  • fill a prescription
  • renew a prescription
  • a prescription for antibiotics
Synonyms
  • script

    informal short form used by patients and pharmacists

  • Rx

    the symbol written on the slip; often used in writing rather than speech

Grammar Patterns

a prescription for + [medicine/condition]

write/give someone a prescription

Usage Note

Frequently appears in 'write/fill/get a prescription' and 'a prescription for [illness or drug]'. Distinguish from sense 2: this is the paper or digital order itself, not the medicine that comes from it.

Common Mistakes

The doctor gave me a prescription of cough syrup.
The doctor gave me a prescription for cough syrup.
use 'for', not 'of', to introduce the drug or condition.

2. the actual medicine that you receive because a doctor told you to take it, espec

2.nounB1
Definition

the actual medicine that you receive because a doctor told you to take it, especially when you collect it from a pharmacy.

Example

Marcus picked up his blood-pressure prescription on the way home from work.

pick up [a/one's] prescription

Remember to take your prescription with food, twice a day, after meals.

Common collocations
  • take a prescription
  • pick up a prescription
  • refill a prescription
  • run out of a prescription
Synonyms
  • medication

    more formal; covers any drug, whether prescribed or over-the-counter

  • meds

    informal plural used in everyday speech

Grammar Patterns

pick up / take / refill a prescription

Usage Note

Object is the drug itself, so it can be 'taken', 'swallowed', 'finished', or 'run out of'. Distinguish from sense 1: you can swallow your prescription only in this sense; in sense 1 you swallow the medicine the prescription names.

Common Mistakes

I drink my prescription every morning.
I take my prescription every morning.
medicines are 'taken', not 'drunk', even when they are liquid.

3. the exact lens power your eyes need in order to see clearly, or the slip from an

3.nounB2
Definition

the exact lens power your eyes need in order to see clearly, or the slip from an eye doctor that records this power so an optician can build the right glasses or matching contact lenses for you.

Example

Maya's prescription has changed, so she needs new lenses for her reading glasses.

one's prescription has changed

The optician printed Carlos's new prescription on a small white card.

Common collocations
  • a strong prescription
  • update a prescription
  • a prescription for contact lenses
Synonyms
  • lens prescription

    fuller phrase used when context is unclear

  • Rx

    common short form on lens packaging and online forms

Grammar Patterns

one's prescription has changed

a prescription for glasses / contact lenses

Usage Note

Subject is usually the eye itself ('my prescription'), not a doctor. Often appears with 'change', 'update', 'check', 'strong', 'weak'. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is for vision, not for medicine to swallow.

Common Mistakes

I got a new prescription of glasses.
I got a new prescription for my glasses.
use 'for' with the item the lens power applies to.

4. an idea or set of steps that someone offers as the right way to fix a problem or

4.nounC1
Definition

an idea or set of steps that someone offers as the right way to fix a problem or reach a goal — for example, a politician's prescription for ending poverty, or a coach's prescription for winning a game.

Example

The mayor's prescription for cleaner air includes more buses and fewer cars in the city centre.

prescription for + [desired outcome]

Cutting taxes alone is no prescription for a healthy economy, the report warned.

Common collocations
  • a prescription for success
  • a prescription for disaster
  • offer a prescription
Synonyms
  • recipe

    very close in meaning when used figuratively, as in 'a recipe for disaster'

  • formula

    suggests a more fixed or repeatable plan

  • remedy

    stresses fixing a problem rather than reaching a goal

Grammar Patterns

a prescription for + [outcome]

a prescription for disaster / success

Usage Note

Almost always followed by 'for + [outcome]', and the outcome is often something either very desired ('success', 'happiness') or feared ('disaster', 'failure'). The figurative meaning borrows from the medical sense, so the speaker is comparing advice to a doctor's order.

Common Mistakes

His advice is a prescription to disaster.
His advice is a prescription for disaster.
the figurative pattern always uses 'for', never 'to'.

prescription — adjective

IPA/prɪˈskrɪp.ʃən/
KK[prəskrˈɪpʃən]IPA/prɪˈskrɪp.ʃən/

Word family

  • prescribe
    verbB2
  • prescribed
    adjectiveB2
  • prescriptive
    adjectiveC1
  • prescriptively
    adverbC1
  • prescriptivism
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words point to a doctor's written instruction for medicine, but they live in different settings. 'Prescription' is the neutral, full word used in clinics, news, and packaging — safe in any register. 'Script' is the casual short form patients and pharmacy staff use among themselves, as in 'I need to refill my script'; it sounds friendly but slightly informal in writing. 'Order', as in 'doctor's order', is much broader and can cover any medical instruction, including tests or rest, not just medicine. 'Rx' is the symbol printed on the slip and on drug packaging; it functions as a written abbreviation rather than a spoken word, so you would write 'Rx only' on a label, but say 'prescription only' when speaking. When in doubt, choose 'prescription'.

prescription ↗script ↗order ↗Rx

Common collocations

Nouns

  • prescription drug
  • prescription medicine
  • prescription pad
  • prescription charge
  • prescription label

Adverbs

  • only by prescription
  • strictly on prescription

Phrases

  • fill a prescription
  • write a prescription
  • renew a prescription
  • available on prescription
  • get something on prescription

Prepositions

  • a prescription for [illness/medicine]
  • on prescription
  • without a prescription
  • by prescription

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

From Latin 'praescriptio', meaning a written order or rule set down in advance, built from 'prae-' ('before') and 'scribere' ('to write'). The word entered English through Old French in the late 1300s, first carrying the general legal sense of a fixed rule. The medical meaning — a doctor's written order for medicine — grew in the 1500s, as written drug instructions became standard practice. The figurative use, meaning a recommended plan, came later by extension.