medical marijuana

noun

variants or less commonly medical cannabis

: marijuana that is available only by prescription and is used to treat a variety of medical conditions (such as pain, anxiety, nausea, and glaucoma)

In the 14 states that allow medical marijuana, middle-aged baby boomers talk quite freely about filling their prescriptions at the local dispensary (of which there are nearly 1,400 in California alone).

—Eve Conant

also : any of various substances (such as cannabidiol) extracted from marijuana and used similarly

Examples of medical marijuana in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Nebraska was one of the few holdouts for medical marijuana. —Tribune Content Agency, The Mercury News, 14 Nov. 2024

Flashback: Many communities enacted similar local bans after Ohio legalized medical marijuana in 2016. —Sam Allard, Axios, 4 Nov. 2024

Louisville Courier Journal The Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis will choose which medical marijuana dispensary applicants will be awarded licenses beginning in late November, Gov. Andy Beshear announced Thursday. —Killian Baarlaer, The Courier-Journal, 31 Oct. 2024

Dispensaries must maintain enough inventory for medical marijuana patients, and some may set aside dedicated hours for them to shop. —Haley Bemiller, The Enquirer, 5 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

medical marijuana

noun

variants also medical cannabis

: marijuana that is available only by prescription and is used to treat a variety of medical conditions (as pain, anxiety, nausea, and glaucoma)

also : any of various substances (as cannabidiol) extracted from marijuana and used similarly