1 ADJ [ADJ n] Medical means relating to illness and injuries and to their treatment or prevention. □ Several police officers received medical treatment for cuts and bruises. □ …the medical profession. ● medi|cal|ly /me d I kli/ ADV [ADV with v, ADV adj] □ Therapists cannot prescribe drugs as they are not necessarily medically qualified.
2 N‑COUNT A medical is a thorough examination of your body by a doctor, for example before you start a new job.
me di|cal ex|a m|in|er (medical examiners )
1 N‑COUNT A medical examiner is a medical expert who is responsible for investigating the deaths of people who have died in a sudden, violent, or unusual way. [AM ]
2 N‑COUNT A medical examiner is a doctor whose job is to examine people, for example when they apply for a job or for health insurance. [AM ]
medi|cat|ed /me d I ke I t I d/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] A medicated soap or shampoo contains substances which are intended to kill bacteria and therefore make your skin or hair healthier.
medi|ca|tion /me d I ke I ʃ ə n/ (medications ) N‑VAR Medication is medicine that is used to treat and cure illness. □ Are you on any medication?
me|dici|nal /med I sən ə l/ ADJ Medicinal substances or substances with medicinal effects can be used to treat and cure illnesses. □ …medicinal plants. ● me|dici|nal|ly ADV [ADV after v] □ Root ginger has been used medicinally for centuries.
medi|cine ◆◇◇ /me ds ə n, [AM ] me d I s I n/ (medicines )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Medicine is the treatment of illness and injuries by doctors and nurses. □ He pursued a career in medicine. □ I was interested in alternative medicine and becoming an aromatherapist. □ Psychiatry is an accepted branch of medicine.
2 N‑VAR Medicine is a substance that you drink or swallow in order to cure an illness. □ People in hospitals are dying because of shortage of medicine. □ …herbal medicines. SYNONYMS medicine NOUN 2
remedy: …natural remedies to help overcome winter infections.
drug: The drug will be useful to hundreds of thousands of infected people.
medication: She stopped taking the prescribed medications.
me|di|eval /me diiː v ə l, [AM ] miː d-/ in BRIT, also use mediaeval ADJ [usu ADJ n] Something that is medieval relates to or was made in the period of European history between the end of the Roman Empire in 476 AD and about 1500 AD. □ …a medieval castle. □ …the medieval chroniclers.
me|dio|cre /miː dioʊ kə r / ADJ If you describe something as mediocre , you mean that it is of average quality but you think it should be better. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ His school record was mediocre. □ …mediocre music.
me|di|oc|rity /miː diɒ kr I ti, me d-/ N‑UNCOUNT If you refer to the mediocrity of something, you mean that it is of average quality but you think it should be better. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ …the mediocrity of most contemporary literature.
medi|tate /me d I te I t/ (meditates , meditating , meditated )
1 VERB If you meditate on something, you think about it very carefully and deeply for a long time. □ [V + on ] On the day her son began school, she meditated on the uncertainties of his future.
2 VERB If you meditate you remain in a silent and calm state for a period of time, as part of a religious training or so that you are more able to deal with the problems and difficulties of everyday life. □ [V ] I was meditating, and reached a higher state of consciousness.
medi|ta|tion /me d I te I ʃ ə n/ (meditations )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Meditation is the act of remaining in a silent and calm state for a period of time, as part of a religious training, or so that you are more able to deal with the problems of everyday life. □ Many busy executives have begun to practice yoga and meditation.
2 → see also transcendental meditation
3 N‑UNCOUNT Meditation is the act of thinking about something very carefully and deeply for a long time. □ …the man, lost in meditation, walking with slow steps along the shore. □ In his lonely meditations, Antony had been forced to the conclusion that there had been rumours.
medi|ta|tive /me d I tət I v, [AM ] -te I t-/ ADJ [ADJ n] Meditative describes things that are related to the act of meditating or the act of thinking very deeply about something. □ Music can induce a meditative state in the listener. □ …moments of meditative silence. ● medi|ta|tive|ly ADV [ADV after v] □ Martin rubbed his chin meditatively.
Medi|ter|ra|nean /me d I təre I niən/
1 N‑PROPER The Mediterranean is the sea between southern Europe and North Africa.
2 N‑PROPER The Mediterranean refers to the southern part of Europe, which is next to the Mediterranean Sea. □ …one of the most dynamic and prosperous cities in the Mediterranean.
3 ADJ Something that is Mediterranean is characteristic of or belongs to the people or region around the Mediterranean Sea. □ …the classic Mediterranean diet.
me|dium ◆◇◇ /miː diəm/ (mediums , media ) The plural of the noun can be either mediums or media for meanings 4 and 5 . The form mediums is the plural for meaning 6 . 1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If something is of medium size, it is neither large nor small, but approximately half way between the two. □ A medium dose produces severe nausea within hours. □ He was of medium height with blond hair and light blue eyes.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] You use medium to describe something which is average in degree or amount, or approximately half way along a scale between two extremes. □ Foods that contain only medium levels of sodium are bread, cakes, milk, butter and margarine. □ …a sweetish, medium-strength beer. ● ADV [ADV adj] Medium is also an adverb. □ Cook under a medium-hot grill.