From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpoisonouspoi‧son‧ous /ˈpɔɪzənəs/ ●●○ adjective 1 HARM/BE BAD FORKILLcontaining poison or producing poison Some mushrooms are extremely poisonous. poisonous gases such as hydrogen sulfide poisonous substances She was bitten on the ankle by a poisonous snake.poisonous to The berries are poisonous to birds.2 UNPLEASANTfull of bad and unfriendly feelings the poisonous atmosphere of the office3 British EnglishCRUEL someone who is poisonous seems to get pleasure from causing arguments, unhappiness etc That poisonous bastard Lucett told Morris I was seeing his wife. —poisonously adverbTHESAURUSpoisonous containing or producing a substance that is likely to kill you, or make you very ill poisonous gaspoisonous snakesThe plant is poisonous to humans and animals.toxic toxic chemicals and waste are poisonous to people and the environment Crops were sprayed with highly toxic chemicals.Lead is toxic to humans.The site was used for the disposal of toxic waste.noxious [usually before noun] formal noxious substances and gases are poisonousVehicles pollute the air with noxious fumesThe soil may be contaminated with noxious substances.hazardous [usually before noun] hazardous substances are likely to harm people, animals, or the environment if they are not dealt with or got rid of carefullyLead is one of the most hazardous substances known, causing cancer and nerve damage.The building is now unoccupied, and all radioactive or hazardous materials have been removed.hazardous nuclear waste deadly extremely poisonous and likely to kill you – used especially about poisons and snakesa deadly poisona deadly snakeTerrorists plotted to release a deadly gas.COLLOCATIONS CHECKpoisonous gas/substance/chemical/snake/insect/plant toxic chemical/substance/wastenoxious substance/gas/fumeshazardous waste/material/chemicaldeadly poison/snake/gas/virus/disease
Examples from the Corpus
poisonous• Don't drink that -- it's poisonous!• The plant's white berries are extremely poisonous.• She would probably marry one of those men with faces like mirrors, Gatsby-men, poisonous and charming.• It just seems bad, poisonous, as if anything at all could happen.• The boy died after eating poisonous berries.• Many of our rivers are full of poisonous chemicals.• Those flowers are poisonous, child, and their perfume is a miasma.• Carbon monoxide is a highly poisonous gas, mostly produced by cars.• A mimetic butterfly is one that resembles another kind of butterfly-usually a poisonous one.• Citizens demanded that the mayor apologize for his poisonous racist comments.• The adder is the only poisonous snake in Britain.• The air is filled with a dingo's howl, the footpaths alive with the poisonous snakes on their slithering nocturnal hunt.• poisonous snakes• Forest Goblin Shamans keep small poisonous spiders in their mouths.• Rincewind wondered if it was poisonous, then chided himself for asking such a silly question.• It was the Mirror too which exposed the massive government cover-up last year over the poisonous waste being dumped on our beaches.poisonous snake• By the way, I don't keep any poisonous snakes.• The King Cobra, or Hamadryad, is the largest of all poisonous snakes.• While on a mission, Paul was bitten by a poisonous snake.• Many of the animals are hostile to humans: for example, poisonous snakes and fierce mountain cats.• In popular mythology poisonous snakes are always ready and waiting for the chance to strike out and kill their attackers.• Ruby Wax found some real wackos in West Virginia-loons who use poisonous snakes in religious ceremonies.• The poisonous snakes invite a certain deference, and the rattlesnake is even canned occasionally for human consumption.• The air is filled with a dingo's howl, the footpaths alive with the poisonous snakes on their slithering nocturnal hunt. 