Meaning & use
megadose
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Meanings
nouncountable
An extremely large amount of a vitamin, drug or other substance, far more than the normal recommended quantity.
Grammar: Countable: a megadose, two megadoses; often followed by of.
Patterns
- a megadose of something
- take a megadose
He took a megadose of vitamin C when he felt a cold coming.
Doctors warn that a megadose of some vitamins can damage the liver.
The study tested a megadose of the drug on mice.
verbtransitiveinformalrare
To give or take a very large quantity of a substance such as a vitamin.
Grammar: Takes an object: megadose the patient or megadose vitamin A. This use is rare and informal.
Patterns
- megadose on something
- megadose someone with something
She megadosed on vitamins all winter.
Some athletes megadose supplements without medical advice.
The researcher megadosed the cells to see how they would react.
Word forms
| plural | megadoses |
|---|---|
| third person singular | megadoses |
| past tense | megadosed |
| past participle | megadosed |
| -ing form | megadosing |
Common combinations
- a megadose of vitamin C
- A megadose of vitamin C will not cure a cold.
- take a megadose
- Never take a megadose without asking a doctor.
- megadose therapy
- Megadose therapy remains controversial among doctors.
- a daily megadose
- He swallowed a daily megadose of supplements.
Synonyms and how they differ
- overdose
- An overdose is a harmful amount, while a megadose is simply very large and may be taken on purpose.
- heavy dose
- A heavy dose is less extreme and can be used about non-medical things such as a heavy dose of humor.
- large dose
- A large dose is a general phrase, while megadose suggests a quantity many times the recommended level.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: megadose or overdose?
megadose vs overdose
An overdose is a dangerous excess that causes harm, but a megadose is only defined by being very large.
Practice
Which word best fits: The nutritionist warned against taking a ___ of vitamin A.
Choose one answer.
A megadose is an extremely large amount, which is what the warning is about. A microdose or half-dose is small, so it would not need a warning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “megadose”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.