prophylactic

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Religious faith often acts as a prophylactic: In revolutionary Iran, rates have plunged to less than 2.1 from almost 6 in the

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Definitions (12)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (3)

  1. adjective Acting to defend against or prevent something, especially disease; protective.
  2. noun A prophylactic agent, device, or measure, such as a vaccine or drug.
  3. noun A contraceptive device, especially a condom.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (3)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

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Examples (50)

  • An analyst had once told her that the shoe fetish was some kind of surrogate prophylactic, a protection to ward off an onslaught of venereal germs, even AIDS. —  AHMM, September 2006
  • Although the Miranda Rule has been described as "prophylactic," the Court has recognized that it is in fact a constitutional rule. —  Colloquy : Northwestern University Law Review
  • Long-term prophylactic antibiotic treatment reduces the rate of reinfection during the treatment, but does not alter the patient's basic susceptibility to infections.
  • This study aimed to investigate therapeutic, prophylactic, and possible exceeding effects of SP-based IPTi in two clinical trials. —  BioMed Central - Latest articles
  • As a prophylactic, a doctor can prescribe antibiotic medication to use only if you get sick. —  canada.com Top Stories
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Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. French prophylactique, from Greek prophulaktikos, from prophulassein, to take precautions against : pro-, before; see pro-2 + phulassein, to protect (from phulax, guard).

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. = French prophylactique = Spanish profiláctico = Portuguese prophylactico, from Greek προφυλακτικός, pertaining to guarding, precautionary, from προφυλάσσ, σ1ειν, keep guard before, from πρό, before, + φυλάσσ, σ1ειν, Attic φυλάττειν, watch, guard: see phylactery.
 

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/prɑfɪˈlæktɪk/
by American Heritage
by Lee Davis-Thalbourne

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