Meaning & use
drug abuse
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountable
The harmful or excessive use of illegal drugs, or the misuse of medicines, in a way that damages health and daily life.
Grammar: Uncountable: drug abuse is rising, not a drug abuse.
Patterns
- drug abuse among someone
- drug abuse in somewhere
The school runs a program to prevent drug abuse among teenagers.
Drug abuse can ruin relationships and careers.
He sought help for his drug abuse before it got worse.
Common combinations
- combat drug abuse
- The city launched a campaign to combat drug abuse.
- prevent drug abuse
- Education is the best way to prevent drug abuse.
- drug abuse treatment
- She works at a drug abuse treatment center.
- history of drug abuse
- The patient has a history of drug abuse.
- drug abuse among teenagers
- Drug abuse among teenagers worries many parents.
Synonyms and how they differ
- substance abuse
- This is broader and includes alcohol and other substances, not just drugs.
- drug misuse
- Misuse sounds slightly softer and often covers wrong use of prescribed medicines.
- addiction
- Addiction means physical or mental dependence, whereas abuse refers to harmful use whether or not someone is dependent.
- drug dependence
- Dependence is the medical state of needing a drug and sounds clinical.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: drug abuse or drug addiction?
drug abuse vs drug addiction
Addiction means being unable to stop using a drug, while abuse means using it harmfully, which may or may not be an addiction.
Practice
The clinic offers counseling to people recovering from ___.
Choose one answer.
Drug abuse is the harmful use of drugs, which people recover from. A drug store is a shop, and the other options are not conditions.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “drug abuse”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.