What is the Latin word for poison?

The usual Latin words for “poison” are venēnum, vīrus, toxicum; also cicūta, pestis, Persius. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“poison” in Latin

venēnuma potion, juice; poison, venom vīrusvenom (a poisonous substance secreted by animals or plants); a plant- or animal-sourced substance with medicinal or magi toxicuma poison used on the tips of arrows; any poison cicūtaa plant, poison hemlock, probably either Conium maculatum or Cicuta virosa; the juice of the hemlock given to prisoners pestisdisease, plague, pestilence, infection; a pest; destruction, ruin, death Persiusa Roman nomen gentile, gens or "family name" famously held by venēnōto poison, imbue or infect with poison; to injure by slander; to color; dye tingōto wet, moisten, dip (in), impregnate (with); to smear; to dip, immerse; to give to drink, treat; to colour, dye, tinge occidōto fall down; to go down, set; to perish, die, pass away interimōto do away with, abolish; to destroy; to slay, kill

The English word poison itself goes back to Latin pōtus, through pōtio.

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

poison s.

venenum (any poison from animals, plants, minerals, Greek, ἰός; by metonymy, for a poisonous potion; and, figuratively, of anything injurious): virus (vegetable poison, φάρμακον): toxicum (PROP., in which the points of arrows were dipped, τοξικόν; called also, by Pliny, venenum cervarium; poetical for any poison): cicuta (hemlock, κώνιον, Vid: Persius, 4, 2): pestis (figuratively, a pernicious thing). Prepared with poison, dipped in poison, venenatus; veneno illitus (rubbed over with poison): veneno infectus, tinctus (dipped in poison): poison that works or kills quickly, venenum praesens, velox, or repentinum (opposed to venenum lentum): to mix poison, venenum parare or coquere; for anyone, alicujus occidendi causa venenum parare; or simply alicui venenum parare; venenum in aliquem comparare: to take or drink poison, venenum sumere, haurire, bibere, or potare (general term); veneno mortem sibi consciscere (to kill one’s self with poison): to give or administer poison, alicui dare venenum: a cup of poison, poculum or scyphus veneni (in Cic., poculum illud mortis, pro Cluent., 11, 31: or poculum illud mortiferum, as Tusc. 1, 31, 71): cicuta (a drink of hemlock, κώνιον): to drain a cup of poison, exhaurire illud mortis poculum; cicutam sorbere: a thing is poison to anybody, aliquid venenum est alicujus.

poison v.

alicui dare venenum (general term); veneno aliquem necare or occidere (to kill with poison): veneno aliquem tollere, interimere, or intercipere (to remove, especially secretly, by poison). To attempt to poison, veneno aliquem tentare or aggredi: to be poisoned, veneno absumi, occidi, or interimi; veneno poto mori; (by anyone), venenum accipere ab aliquo (Vid: Tac., Ann., 2, 96, 3).

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for poison?: The usual Latin words for “poison” are venēnum, vīrus, toxicum; also cicūta, pestis, Persius. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.