Standard Lemma guide

poisonous

adj · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈpɔɪzənəs/
  • /ˈpɔɪznəs/
  • Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɔɪzənəs
  • rhymes with -ɔɪznəs
  • CMU ARPABET: P OY1 Z AH0 N AH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Containing sufficient poison to be dangerous to touch or ingest.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • While highly poisonous to dogs, this substance is completely harmless if ingested by humans.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: poisoned, toxic, venomous, attery

Antonyms: nonpoisonous, unpoisonous

2

adj

Meaning 2

Of an animal such as a snake or spider, or parts of its body: producing a toxin intended for defensive or offensive use which is usually injected into an enemy or prey by biting or stinging; hence, of a bite or sting: injecting poison.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: proscribed, sometimes

Examples

  • Poisonous snakes should only be handled by experienced professionals.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Negative, harmful.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: toxic

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective satellite

Meaning 4

marked by deep ill will; deliberately harmful

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • poisonous hate
  • venomous criticism
  • vicious gossip

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: venomous, vicious

Antonyms: none provided

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

not safe to eat

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

adjective satellite

Meaning 6

having the qualities or effects of a poison

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: toxicant

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English poisounous, poysonouse. By surface analysis, poison + -ous.

Across languages

Translations

93 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Northern Altai: оолыг (oolïg) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Northern Altai: корондуг (korondug) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Southern Altai: коронду (korondu) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Southern Altai: уулу (uulu) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Arabic: سَامّ (sāmm) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Armenian: թունավոր (tʻunavor) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Aromanian: nfãrmãcos — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Aromanian: fãrmãchiros — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Aromanian: toapsec — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Asturian: venenosu — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Azerbaijani: zəhərli — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Belarusian: ядаві́ты (jadavíty) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Belarusian: атру́тны (atrútny) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Bulgarian: отро́вен (otróven) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Catalan: verinós — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Catalan: tòxic — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Chinese Mandarin: 有毒的 (yǒudú de) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Czech: jedovatý — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Danish: giftig — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Dutch: giftig — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Esperanto: venena — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Esperanto: veneniga — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Finnish: myrkyllinen — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • French: vénéneux — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • French: toxique — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Friulian: velenôs — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Friulian: tossic — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Galician: velenoso — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • German: giftig — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Greek: δηλητηριώδης (dilitiriódis) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Hindi: विषाक्त (viṣākt) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Hindi: ज़हरीला (zahrīlā) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Hungarian: mérges — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Hungarian: mérgező — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Icelandic: eitraður — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Ido: venenoza — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Indonesian: beracun — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Irish: nimhiúil — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Italian: velenifero — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Italian: velenoso — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Italian: tossico — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Kazakh: улы (uly) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Latin: venēnōsus — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Latin: venēnifer — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Latin: toxicus — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Latvian: indīgs — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Luxembourgish: gëfteg — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Macedonian: отровен (otroven) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Manx: pyshoonagh — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Manx: nieuagh — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Eastern Mari: аяр (ajar) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Neapolitan: 'ntussecoso — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Norwegian Bokmål: giftig — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Norwegian Bokmål: skadelig — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Occitan: verinós — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Old English: ǣtren — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Old English: ǣtriġ — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Polish: trujący — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Portuguese: tóxico — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Portuguese: venenoso — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Punjabi: ਵਿਸੂਲ਼ਾ (visūḷā) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Romanian: otrăvitor — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Romanian: veninos — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Russian: ядови́тый (jadovítyj) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Russian: токси́чный (toksíčnyj) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Sanskrit: विष (viṣa) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Scottish Gaelic: puinnseanta — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Serbo-Croatian: о̀тро̄ван — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Serbo-Croatian: òtrōvan — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Slovak: jedovatý — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Slovene: strupen — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Spanish: ponzoñoso — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Tagalog: nakalalason — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Telugu: విషపూరిత (viṣapūrita) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Tocharian B: wsetstse — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Turkish: zehirli — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Ottoman Turkish: مسموم (mesmum) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Ukrainian: отру́йний (otrújnyj) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Venetan: vełenoxo — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Venetan: tosegoxo — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Venetan: tosego — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Volapük: venenik — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Welsh: gwenwynig — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Yiddish: סמיק (samik) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Yiddish: גיפֿטיק (giftik) — containing sufficient poison to be dangerous
  • Dutch: toxisch — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • Dutch: verziekt — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • Finnish: haitallinen — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • Finnish: myrkyttävä — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • Finnish: myrkyllinen — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • German: giftig — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • German: toxisch — (figuratively) negative, harmful
  • Luxembourgish: gëfteg — (figuratively) negative, harmful
Real reading context

poisonous in complete knowledge articles