Sedative

//ˈsɛdətɪv// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An agent or drug that sedates, having a calming or soothing effect, or inducing sleep.
  2. 2
    a drug that reduces excitability and calms a person wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Calming, soothing, inducing sleep, tranquilizing
Adjective
  1. 1
    tending to soothe or tranquilize wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
depressantdownersleeping pilltranquilizeralcoholallaying

Example

More examples

"The doctor gave Tom a sedative."

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English sedatif, from Anglo-Norman sedatif, from Medieval Latin sēdātīvus, which itself likely influenced the modern spelling.

Related phrases

salt sedativesedative saltcalming drugdrowsy drug

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.