opium

C1 Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ˈoʊ.pi.əm/ UK /ˈəʊ.pi.əm/ See IPA manual

Freq #9862

Meanings

1

noun
A yellow-brown, addictive narcotic drug obtained from the dried juice of unripe pods of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, and containing alkaloids such as morphine, codeine, and papaverine.

From hence we firſt ſailed to Achin, in the iſland of Sumatra, and then to Siam, where we bartered our wares for ſome arrack and opium, the laſt of which bore a great price among the Chineſe:[…].
2

noun
Anything that numbs or stupefies.

Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, […] It is the opium of the people.
3

noun
an addictive narcotic extracted from seed capsules of the opium poppy

Thesaurus

Synonyms

chandudopiumfi-do-niegee gondolagoricgumameconiummudopepoxskee

Word family

Derived forms antiopiumantiopiumistcopiumhopiumlanthopineopianineopiomaniaopiorphinopium-eateropium-eatingopiumismopiumist

Appears in

Phrases (2)

See all

opium den
a place where opium is sold and used

Noun + noun
opium poppy
the poppy species from whose unripe seed capsules opium is obtained

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Opium entered English in the late Middle English period and comes ultimately from Greek opion, meaning “poppy juice.”

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sokʷós Ancient Greek ὀπός (opós) Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Ancient Greek -ῐος (-ĭos)? Ancient Greek -ῐον (-ĭon) Ancient Greek ὄπιον (ópion)bor. Latin opiumbor. ▲ Ancient Greek ὄπιον (ópion)bor. English opium Borrowed from Latin opium and Ancient Greek ὄπιον (ópion), from ὀπός (opós, “juice of a plant”), from Proto-Indo-European *sokʷós (“juice, resin”).

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# opium

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈoʊ.pi.əm/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈəʊ.pi.əm/
**Frequency rank:** 9862

## Meanings
1. A yellow-brown, addictive narcotic drug obtained from the dried juice of unripe pods of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, and containing alkaloids such as morphine, codeine, and papaverine.
2. Anything that numbs or stupefies.
3. an addictive narcotic extracted from seed capsules of the opium poppy

## Examples
- From hence we firſt ſailed to Achin, in the iſland of Sumatra, and then to Siam, where we bartered our wares for ſome arrack and opium, the laſt of which bore a great price among the Chineſe:[…].
- Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, […] It is the opium of the people.

## Synonyms
- chandu
- dopium
- fi-do-nie
- gee
- gondola
- goric
- guma
- meconium
- mud
- ope
- pox
- skee

## Derived Forms
- antiopium
- antiopiumist
- copium
- hopium
- lanthopine
- opianine
- opiomania
- opiorphin
- opium-eater
- opium-eating
- opiumism
- opiumist

## Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sokʷós Ancient Greek ὀπός (opós) Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Ancient Greek -ῐος (-ĭos)? Ancient Greek -ῐον (-ĭon) Ancient Greek ὄπιον (ópion)bor. Latin opiumbor. ▲ Ancient Greek ὄπιον (ópion)bor. English opium Borrowed from Latin opium and Ancient Greek ὄπιον (ópion), from ὀπός (opós, “juice of a plant”), from Proto-Indo-European *sokʷós (“juice, resin”).

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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