1
a
: a usually iced drink of wine or distilled liquor mixed with flavoring ingredients
b
: something resembling or suggesting such a drink as being a mixture of often diverse elements or ingredients
… a cocktail of remembered incidents and pure imagination …—
Charlotte Low
Charlotte Lowa cocktail of herbicides
c
: a mixture of agents usually in solution that is taken or used especially for medical treatment or diagnosis
2
: an appetizer served as a first course at a meal
1
: of, relating to, or set aside for cocktails
a cocktail hour
2
: designed for semiformal wear
a cocktail dress
: a horse with its tail docked
Examples of cocktail in a Sentence
Noun (1)
an autopsy found a lethal cocktail of banned substances in the actor's body
Recent Examples on the Web
Zuri Primos, Kansas City Star, 28 May 2026
Yelp reviewers think the cocktails are next-level.
—Fielding Buck, Daily News, 28 May 2026
Anyway, along with plenty of beers on tap as always, Alary’s also has $12 cocktails and some pretty solid fancy spirits at a $26 price point.
—Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 28 May 2026
Both fresh and frozen soursop can be pureed and mixed into cocktails.
—Kirsten Nunez, Martha Stewart, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for cocktail
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Noun
This alcoholic beverage is blended and frozen like ice cream but contains all the flavor and alcohol of a margarita cocktail.
—Zuri Primos, Kansas City Star, 28 May 2026
Yelp reviewers think the cocktails are next-level.
—Fielding Buck, Daily News, 28 May 2026
Anyway, along with plenty of beers on tap as always, Alary’s also has $12 cocktails and some pretty solid fancy spirits at a $26 price point.
—Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 28 May 2026
Both fresh and frozen soursop can be pureed and mixed into cocktails.
—Kirsten Nunez, Martha Stewart, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for cocktail
Cite this Entry
“Cocktail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cocktail. Accessed 29 May. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
cocktail
noun
cock·tail
ˈkäk-ˌtāl 
: a mixture of agents usually in solution that is taken or used especially for medical treatment or diagnosis
a potent cocktail of antiretroviral drugs—Zia Jaffrey
Zia Jaffreychemotherapy cocktails to treat cancer—J. L. Swerdlow
J. L. SwerdlowLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
