the pill

pill

1. slang An unsavory, unpleasant, or difficult person. Tom is such a pill, but I have to work with him to get this project finished, unfortunately. Our three-year-old can be the sweetest little girl in the world, but she can be a real pill at times too.
2. informal Some fact or piece of information that is particularly bad, unpleasant, or dissatisfactory. Used in phrases such as "sweeten the pill" or "a bitter pill to swallow," etc. Getting a poor performance review was a bitter pill to swallow, but it made me a better worker. I have to tell my mom about wrecking her car, but I need to find a way to sweeten the pill first.
3. slang A barbiturate or amphetamine in tablet form. Usually used in the plural. I smoked a little weed when I was in college, but I never touched pills. Everyone at the rave was hopped up on pills.
4. slang Any ball used in sports. He hit the pill with such force that his bat shattered. My love of football started when I was a kid, when my dad would take me in the back yard to throw the pill around.

the pill

1. The birth control pill (an oral contraceptive that inhibits ovulation to prevent conception). I tried the pill for a while in college, but it really didn't agree with my body. A: "Why on worth wouldn't you use a condom, dude?" B: "She told me she was on the pill!"
2. Some fact or piece of information that is particularly bad, unpleasant, or dissatisfactory. Used exclusively in constructions like "sweeten the pill," "sugar-coat the pill," etc. The bosses are giving everyone an extra 10% bonus this year, but I suspect it's a way of sugar-coating the pill that there will be massive pay cuts in January. I have to tell my mom about wrecking her car, but I need to find a way to sweeten the pill first.
See also: pill
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

pill

1. and the pill n. a birth control pill. (Always with the in this sense.) The pill has really changed my life.
2. n. a tobacco cigarette; a marijuana cigarette. I’ll trade you a pill for a match.
3. n. a drug in capsule form. The doctor prescribed these pills.
4. n. a football. Fred kicked the pill through the goal and won the game.

the pill

verb
See pill
See also: pill
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • pill
  • bad news
  • be bad news
  • do the deed
  • come to a bad end
  • come to a bad/sticky end
  • take up with (one)
  • get (something) over with
  • get it over with
  • polecat
References in periodicals archive
Reflecting the classic approach to medical compliance, which implicitly measures patients "deviance" from a pre scribed medical rule, most studies have defined inconsistent use of the pill as missing at least one pill during a cycle.
Social, demographic and situational characteristics associated with inconsistent use of oral contraceptives: evidence from France
The new research is in stark contrast to previous health scares about the Pill, including the risk of blood clots.
The Pill credited with cutting ovarian cancer risk
The risk returns to normal when women stop taking the pill. (5) Low-dose pills, moreover, cause abortions much more often.
Love, justice & misrepresentation in medical practice
The companies plan to file a marketing application with the Food and Drug Administration in the second quarter; if approved as expected, the pill could be available by the end of the year.
Anticipating the once-a-day pill: a new daily anti-HIV pill is likely to become available later this year. Some patients can't wait, some are happy to stick with what they've got, and many won't have an option
The most serious side effect of the pill continues to be an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in certain groups, such as women who smoke, women over age 35, obese women and those with a history of high blood pressure, diabetes or elevated cholesterol levels.
Birth Control Pills; Key Q&A
"You don't know with certainty the potency of the pill, the makeup of the pill and what possible interactions it will have with other medications you are taking or allergic reactions that may cause death," explains Falkowski.
Prescription for trouble: from middle schoolers lookin' for a buzz to high school students attempting to lose weight to college kids pulling all nighters, Ritalin abuse is rampant. But most girls don't know pills can be as dangerous as street drugs. Why are so many willing to take the risk? Here are the facts about this troubling trend
If you're supposed to take a 20-milligram dose of Lipitor and split the pill, that's not good.
The case against the case against pill-splitting
While books and flyers making claims I about the abortifacient properties of the Pill have been circulating at anti-abortion rallies and conservative conventions for years (I first saw anti-Pill propaganda at a Washington, D.C., Promise Keepers rally in 1997), only lately have they burst into the mainstream.
Back-Alley vasectomies
Dunking the pills in a creamy salad dressing lubricates the pill.
Pedia trick: helping pills go down
In his experience, the pelvic exam almost never turns up any contraindication to the pill.
Start teens on monophasic oral contraceptives: compliance not as problematic. (Clinical Rounds)
As long as you are in good health, continuing to train can actually counteract many of the potentially adverse effects of the pill.
The clinic
While in the Netherlands, pill testing is part of official drug policy elsewhere it is merely tolerated.For the pill testing projects, social workers work with psychologists and chemists.
JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS: EU DRUGS AGENCY URGES MORE PILL-TESTING IN DANCE CLUBS
But this can actually be dangerous, say experts, because tilting your head back opens the trachea (windpipe), making it all the more likely for the pill to go down the wrong pipe, blocking your breathing and causing you to choke.
Swallow Pills Safely
New rules in the UK governing the availability of the pill came into effect on New Year's day.
Sex epidemic fears sparked as morning after pill goes on sale
But doctors were quick to stress the latest findings should not spark another health scare about use of the Pill.
Pill study warns of greater blood clot danger