physic

UK: /ˈfɪzɪk/ US: (fiz′ik)

Inflections of 'physic' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

physics

v 3rd person singular

physicking

v pres p

physicked

v past

physicked

v past p

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

phys•ic  (fiz′ik), n., v., -icked, -ick•ing. 
n. 

1. Drugs a medicine that purges;
   cathartic;
   laxative.
2. Drugs any medicine;
   a drug or medicament.
3. Drugs [Archaic.] the medical art or profession.
4. Drugs [Obs.] See natural science. 

v.t. 

5. Drugs to treat with or act upon as a physic or medicine.
6. Drugs to work upon as a medicine does;
   relieve or cure.

• Greek physiké̄ science of nature, noun, nominal use of feminine adjective, adjectival: pertaining to nature (akin to phŷlon tribe, phylon); (verb, verbal) Middle English, derivative of the noun, nominal
• Latin physica natural science (Medieval Latin: medical science)
• Old French fisique)
• (noun, nominal) Middle English fisyk(e), phisik(e) (1250–1300

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

physic / ˈfɪzɪk/ noun

1. a medicine or drug, esp a cathartic or purge
2. the art or skill of healing
3. an archaic term for physics1

verb ( -ics, -icking, -icked)

1. (transitive) to treat (a patient) with medicine

Etymology: 13th Century: from Old French fisique, via Latin, from Greek phusikē, from phusis nature