Apothecary
Apothecary ({not transcribed}) , noun
[Old English apotecarie, from Late Latin apothecarius, from Latin apotheca storehouse, Greek apo, from {not transcribed} to put away; {not transcribed} from + {not transcribed} to put: compare French apothicaire, Old French apotecaire. See Thesis.]
1.
One who prepares and sells drugs or compounds for medicinal purposes; a druggist; a pharmacist.
In England an apothecary is one of a privileged class of practitioners, licensed to prescribe medicine -- a kind of sub-physician. The surgeon apothecary is the ordinary family medical attendant. One who sells drugs and makes up prescriptions is now commonly called in England a druggist or a pharmaceutical chemist.
2.
A drugstore; a store where medicines are sold.
Collocations (1)
Apothecaries' weight , the system of weights by which medical prescriptions were formerly compounded. The pound and ounce are the same as in Troy weight; they differ only in the manner of subdivision. The ounce is divided into 8 drams, 24 scruples, 480 grains. See Troy weight.