This article deals with a number of concepts related to the basic nature of addiction, that are widely used but often misused, and that have undergone significant changes since the term addiction first came into the common vocabulary. In the following discussion, the terms are grouped according to themes, rather than being arranged in alphabetic order.

Abuse and Misuse

In everyday English, abuse carries the connotations of improper, perverse, or corrupt use or practice, as in childabuse, or abuse of power. As applied to drugs, however, the term is difficult to define and carries different meanings in different contexts. In relation to therapeutic agents such as BENZONDIAZEPINES or MORPHINE, the term drug abuse is applied to their use for other than medical purposes, or in unnecessarily large quantities. With reference to licit but non-therapeutic substances such as ALCOHOL, it is understood to...