Placebo [Noun]

Sentence: For a drug to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, it must prove itself better than a placebo, or fake drug. This is because of the “placebo effect,” in which patients often improve just because they think they are being treated with something. If we can’t compare a new drug with a placebo, we can’t be sure that the benefit seen from it is anything more than wishful thinking. (Source: www.nytimes.com)

Meaning: Something that has no intrinsic (remedial) value but is used to reassure, placate or humor someone

Picture Credit: commons.wikimedia.org

How To Remember?

The “-bo” in “Placebo”should remind you of the word “bogus”. And like all bogus things, the event or effect is not true or genuine. Easy?

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