Homeopathy

Homeopathy
A system of therapy founded in the 19th century based on the concept that disease can be treated with drugs (in minute doses) thought capable of producing the same symptoms in healthy people as the disease itself.
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A system of therapy developed by Samuel Hahnemann based on the “law of similia,” from the aphorism, similia similibus curantur (likes are cured by likes), which holds that a medicinal substance that can evoke certain symptoms in healthy individuals may be effective in the treatment of illnesses having similar symptoms, if given in very small doses [homeo- + G. pathos, suffering]

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ho·me·op·a·thy or Brit ho·moe·op·a·thy .hō-mē-'äp-ə-thē, .häm-ē- n, pl -thies a system of medical practice that treats a disease esp. by the administration of minute doses of a remedy that would in healthy persons produce symptoms similar to those of the disease compare ALLOPATHY (1)
ho·meo·path·ic or Brit ho·moeo·path·ic .hō-mē-ə-'path-ik adj
ho·meo·path·i·cal·ly or Brit ho·moeo·path·i·cal·ly -i-k(ə-)lē adv

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n.
a complementary therapy based on the theory that 'like cures like'. It involves treating a condition with a tiny dose of a substance that in larger doses would normally cause or aggravate that condition. The dose is made smaller by diluting it many times in purified water; it is activated by shaking in an exact way. Homeopathy was developed by a German doctor, Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843), in 1796.
• homeopathic adj.

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ho·me·op·a·thy (ho″me-opґə-the) [homeo- + -pathy] a system of therapeutics founded by Samuel Hahnemann (1755–1843), in which diseases are treated by drugs which are capable of producing in healthy persons symptoms like those of the disease to be treated, the drug being administered in minute doses. Cf. allopathy. homeopathic adj

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • homeopathy —    Homeopathy is a system of medicine that aims to relieve suffering, to heal and to cure. It is based on a very simple natural principle: ‘like cures like’. Hippocrates first referred to its principles in the fourth century BC, and the German… …   Encyclopedia of contemporary British culture

  • Homeopathy — Ho*me*op a*thy, n. [Gr. ? likeness of condition or feeling; ? like (fr. ? same; cf. {Same}) + ? to suffer: cf. F. hom[ e]opathie. See {Pathos}.] (Med.) The art of curing, founded on resemblances; the theory and its practice that disease is cured… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • homeopathy — 1830, from Ger. Homöopathie, coined 1824 by German physician Samuel Friedrich Hahnemann (1755 1843) from Gk. homoios like, similar, of the same kind (see HOMEO (Cf. homeo )) + patheia (see PATHY (Cf. pathy)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • homeopathy — (also homoeopathy) ► NOUN ▪ a system of complementary medicine in which disease is treated by minute doses of natural substances that in large quantities would produce symptoms of the disease. DERIVATIVES homeopathic adjective. ORIGIN from Greek… …   English terms dictionary

  • homeopathy — [hō΄mē äp′ə thē] n. [Ger homöopathie, lit., likeness of feeling (see HOMEO & PATHY): coined ( c. 1800) by HAHNEMANN (Christian Friedrich) Samuel] a system of medical treatment based on the theory that certain diseases can be cured by giving very… …   English World dictionary

  • Homeopathy — Homeopathy: coined in German from Greek hómoios ὅμοιος like + páthos πάθος suffering Oxford English Dictionary …   Wikipedia

  • homeopathy — /hoh mee op euh thee/, n. the method of treating disease by drugs, given in minute doses, that would produce in a healthy person symptoms similar to those of the disease (opposed to allopathy). [1820 30; HOMEO + PATHY] * * * System of… …   Universalium

  • homeopathy — ho|me|op|a|thy [ ,houmi apəθi ] noun uncount a way of treating illness by giving small amounts of natural substances that in large amounts would cause the illness. It is a form of COMPLEMENTARY medicine. A person who treats people using… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • homeopathy — [[t]ho͟ʊmiɒ̱pəθi[/t]] N UNCOUNT Homeopathy is a way of treating an illness in which the patient is given very small amounts of a drug that produces signs of the illness in healthy people. (in BRIT, also use homoeopathy) …   English dictionary

  • homeopathy — homoeopathy; n. a complementary therapy based on the theory that like cures like . It involves treating a condition with a tiny dose of a substance that in larger doses would normally cause or aggravate that condition. The dose is made smaller by …   The new mediacal dictionary

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