opiate 1 of 2

Definition of opiatenext

opiate

2 of 2

noun

as in narcotic
something that soothes, calms, or induces passivity or a sense of security a cultural critic who argues that the Internet has now joined television as an opiate of the American people

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of opiate
Adjective
Some researchers, concerned by reports of antidepressant withdrawal, suggest that the underlying mechanisms are similar to those faced by people suffering from alcohol and opiate withdrawal. David Cox, NBC news, 30 Nov. 2025 Taylor has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disease, and an opiate use disorder. Jeff Nguyen, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025
Noun
Offering 99 percent accuracy for five different drugs, this drug test has exceptional sensitivity for detecting opiates in urine. Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026 The illicit love story between the money launderer and the fentanyl trafficker working together to shower New England with deadly opiates came crashing down under the weight of a multi-year federal investigation. Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 6 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for opiate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for opiate
Adjective
  • There’s something hypnotic and ritualistic in it, something that can become almost shamanic, almost therapeutic — like a sound bath.
    Alma Rota, Rolling Stone, 17 June 2026
  • Instrumental rock music of the kind Horse Lords make—hypnotic, hyper-focused, complex—usually carries a whiff of manifesto, offering a map toward transcendence of some political, metaphysical, or pick-your-variety kind.
    Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 16 June 2026
Noun
  • The oldest defendant, 70-year-old Glenn Middleton, is charged with firearm and narcotics offenses and accused of storing items used in the conspiracy.
    Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 24 June 2026
  • The seizures added up to about 420 grams of cocaine, $2,291 in cash, a rifle, four pistols, various magazines and ammunition, and digital scales and packaging materials believed to be used in narcotics distribution, the sheriff's office said.
    Paula Wethington, CBS News, 23 June 2026
Noun
  • The worrisome drug withdrawal popping up in jails A powerful tranquilizer has started to accompany fentanyl in the country’s illicit opioid supply, and jails are struggling to handle the drug’s excruciating, complicated withdrawal symptoms.
    O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 26 June 2026
  • When Krem takes off in Kara’s spacecraft, a rusted hulk that’s like an interplanetary RV, and shoots her beloved dog Krypto with a lethal tranquilizer that will result in agonizing death in three days, Kara joins Ruthye on her revenge quest.
    David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 24 June 2026
Noun
  • But the solution caused Peñaloza Cabrera to suffer lidocaine toxicity, a condition that occurs when excessive amounts of the anesthetic enter the bloodstream, causing seizures, irregular heart rhythm, respiratory failure and — as in the victim’s case — cardiac arrest.
    Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 18 June 2026
  • Perry, who had long struggled with addiction and wrote about it in a memoir, illegally obtained the powerful dissociative anesthetic from at least two sources.
    City News Service, Daily News, 27 May 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Opiate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/opiate. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.

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