adjuvant

1 of 2

adjective

ad·ju·vant ˈa-jə-vənt

: serving to aid or contribute : auxiliary

: enhancing the effectiveness of medical treatment

Retinoids also seem to be useful as adjuvant therapy in the treatment of psoriasis, and they may induce regression of premalignant lesions, including actinic keratoses.—

Robert S. Stern

specifically : of, relating to, or being treatment administered following primary cancer treatment to enhance the outcome of primary treatment

adjuvant chemotherapy following surgery

… women who choose this extensive surgery live no longer than women who choose lumpectomy (with or without adjuvant radiation) and frequent check-ups —

Susan S. Weed

compare neoadjuvant

adjuvant

2 of 2

noun

: one that helps or facilitates: such as

: an ingredient (as in a prescription or a solution) that modifies the action of the principal ingredient

: something (such as a drug or method) that enhances the effectiveness of medical treatment

used chemotherapy as an adjuvant to surgery

: a substance (such as one added to a vaccine) enhancing the immune response to an antigen

Did you know?

Things that are adjuvant rarely get top billing—they're the supporting players, not the stars. But that doesn't mean they're not important. An adjuvant medicine, for example, can have a powerful healing effect when teamed up with another medicine or curative treatment. Adjuvant descends from the Latin verb adjuvare ("to aid"), which also gave English the nouns coadjutor ("assistant") and aid. These days, adjuvant tends to turn up most often in medical contexts, but it can also be used in the general sense of "serving to aid." Likewise, the noun adjuvant can mean "a drug or method that enhances the effectiveness of medical treatment" or simply "one that helps or facilitates."

Examples of adjuvant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The company's vaccine platforms combine formulation and adjuvant ingredients to stabilize and deliver RNA to the immune system to stimulate responses. —

Kansas City Star, 25 Apr. 2024 Formally known as adjuvant therapy, administering chemotherapy or other treatments after surgery is a common approach to treating certain types of cancer and is not necessarily intended to prevent cancer. —

Alexander Olawaiye, The Conversation, 27 Mar. 2024

Noun

An adjuvant is an ingredient added to help spark a stronger immune response. —

Beth Weinhouse, Health, 26 June 2024 For example, a number of vaccine candidates use the same adjuvant, a substance produced from a natural compound extracted from the Chilean soapbark tree. —

Thomas J. Bollyky, Foreign Affairs, 27 July 2020 See all Example Sentences for adjuvant

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'adjuvant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

borrowed from Latin adjuvant-, adjuvans, present participle of adjuvāre "to help, aid, facilitate" — more at aid entry 1

Noun

borrowed from Medieval Latin adjuvant-, adjuvans, going back to Latin, present participle of adjuvāre "to help, aid, facilitate" — more at aid entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1574, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1583, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of adjuvant was in 1574

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Style

“Adjuvant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adjuvant. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.

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Medical Definition

adjuvant

1 of 2 adjective

ad·ju·vant ˈaj-ə-vənt

: serving to aid or contribute

: assisting in the prevention, amelioration, or cure of disease

adjuvant chemotherapy following surgery

adjuvant

2 of 2 noun

: one that helps or facilitates: as

: an ingredient (as in a prescription or solution) that facilitates or modifies the action of the principal ingredient

the beneficial activity of the spray is enhanced by adjuvants

: something (as a drug or method) that enhances the effectiveness of a medical treatment

used chemotherapy as an adjuvant to surgery

: a substance enhancing the immune response to an antigen

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adjuvant

adjective

noun

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Examples of adjuvant in a Sentence

Word History

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Dictionary Entries Near adjuvant

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Medical Definition