TTile Streak

What TOXIC means

Of or relating to or caused by a toxin or poison.

That is the short version. Read on for how to say TOXIC, how to use it, and a quick way to make it stick.

TOXIC at a glance

  • Word: TOXIC
  • Part of speech: adj
  • Pronunciation: /ˈtɑksɪk/
  • Meaning: Of or relating to or caused by a toxin or poison.
  • Example: Suffering from exposure to toxic substances.

Keep this box in view while you read the rest of the page. A short summary like this is often enough for a quick lookup, and the sections below are for when you want the meaning to actually stay with you.

How to say TOXIC

Pronunciation: /ˈtɑksɪk/

Part of speech: adj

Say TOXIC out loud a few times. Hearing your own voice say a new word is one of the fastest ways to remember both its sound and its meaning. Try saying it slowly first, then at normal speed, then inside a full sentence. If a part of the pronunciation trips you up, slow down on that part alone before putting the whole word back together.

TOXIC in a sentence

Suffering from exposure to toxic substances.

Notice how TOXIC fits into that sentence as adj. Try swapping in your own subject and see if the sentence still makes sense. If it does, you have understood the meaning of TOXIC, not just memorized it.

Ways to remember TOXIC

A new word sticks better when you do something with it, not just read it.

Say it, then use it. Repeat TOXIC once, then build one sentence of your own with it today.

Connect it to something you know. Think of a moment from your own week where TOXIC could apply, even loosely.

Spell it out. Cover the word, spell TOXIC from memory, then check. This catches the letters your eyes skipped over the first time.

Come back tomorrow. A word reviewed a day later is far more likely to stay than one read once and left.

Notice it in the wild. Once you know TOXIC, you will start spotting it in things you read. Each time you notice it, the meaning gets a little more solid.

Play a board with TOXIC

A definition is easier to keep once you have used the word under a little pressure. Try today's word game, or search for more words like TOXIC with the word finder. Missed a word along the way? The vocabulary quiz is a quick way to check what stuck, and missed words come back around for review instead of disappearing.

For teachers and parents

This page works well as a quick reference before a lesson or a homework check. Look up a word, read the definition and example together, then ask the student to build a new sentence with it. A student who can use TOXIC correctly in a sentence they made up has learned it. One who can only repeat the definition back has not, yet.

A quick classroom routine: put TOXIC on the board, cover the definition, and ask the class to guess the meaning from the example sentence alone. Reveal the real definition after a few guesses. It takes a minute and gets students reasoning about context clues instead of just memorizing.

More words to learn

The letters in TOXIC

  • Length: 5 letters
  • Vowels: 2 (O, I)
  • Different letters: 5, all different
  • First letter: T, last letter: C

Words built from the same letters

  • OPTIC: Of or relating to or resembling the eye.
  • STOIC: A member of the ancient Greek school of philosophy founded by Zeno.
  • TONIC: Bearing the principle stress, usually accompanied by a change in pitch.
  • TOPIC: The subject matter of a conversation or discussion.

Nearby words

  • TOWER: Anything that approximates the shape of a column or tower.
  • TRACE: A just detectable amount.

Questions

What part of speech is TOXIC?

TOXIC is adj.

How do you say TOXIC?

/ˈtɑksɪk/

Can I see TOXIC used in a sentence?

Suffering from exposure to toxic substances.