下药 (xià yào) — to prescribe medication (for someone); to add poison (to food or drink)
Definition
A verb-object phrase whose meaning depends on intent: 'prescribe/give medicine' in medical contexts, or 'poison food/drink' when the agent is covert or hostile. Note the separable form — 下 and 药 can split (在酒里下药 → 在酒里下了药).
verb
to prescribe medication (for someone)to add poison (to food or drink)
Examples
- 。Yī shēng gěi tā xià le yào.The doctor prescribed medicine for him.
- 下药。Tā tōu tōu zài jiǔ lǐ xià yào.He secretly put poison in the wine.
- 下药。Zhè zhǒng bìng xū yào zǎo xià yào.This kind of illness requires early medication.
Appears in
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