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Pharmacy & Pharmacology vocabulary · Prescriptions and Dosing

Prescribe

Meaning in pharmacy & pharmacology, with examples

/prɪˈskraɪb/verbCore term

In pharmacy & pharmacology, prescribe means: To decide that a patient should have a particular medicine or treatment and to write an official order for it.

In Turkish: reçete etmek, reçeteye yazmak, ilaç yazmak

How it is used

Doctors prescribe a drug for a condition or to a patient. In some countries nurses and pharmacists can also prescribe after extra training. The person who prescribes is the prescriber; the noun is prescribing, as in 'generic prescribing' or 'prescribing errors'.

Example sentences

  1. The GP prescribed a short course of antibiotics.

  2. Is this medicine often prescribed for children?

Common collocations

  • prescribe a drug
  • prescribe for a condition
  • prescribing error
  • independent prescriber
  • prescriptionA written or electronic order from a doctor or other authorised prescriber that tells the pharmacist which medicine to supply and how the patient should use it.
  • doseThe amount of a medicine taken or given at one time, such as one tablet, two puffs of an inhaler or 5 millilitres of a liquid.
  • dosageHow much of a medicine to take, how often and for how long, for example two tablets three times a day for five days.
  • generic drugA medicine with the same active ingredient, strength, dosage form and effect as an original branded medicine, usually sold after the original's patent has expired.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Prescriptions and Dosing

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.