"on steroids" meaning in English

See on steroids in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Prepositional phrase

Audio: En-au-on steroids.ogg [Australia]
Etymology: The literal sense is from anabolic steroid use as illicit drug use for doping, to become bulked up; the figurative sense is an extension.
  1. (idiomatic, informal, usually after the name of a place or thing) To a greater degree, exaggerating the characteristics of the previously named object. Tags: idiomatic, informal, usually Coordinate_terms: on wheels, pro max Translations (to a greater degree): potenssiin kymmenen (Finnish), auf Anabolika (German), auf Speed (German), על סטרואידים (Hebrew), all'ennesima potenza (Italian)
    Sense id: en-on_steroids-en-prep_phrase-mOP3J7js Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Finnish translations, Terms with German translations, Terms with Hebrew translations, Terms with Italian translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 52 48 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 53 47 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 67 33 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 56 44 Disambiguation of Terms with Finnish translations: 61 39 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 61 39 Disambiguation of Terms with Hebrew translations: 61 39 Disambiguation of Terms with Italian translations: 62 38 Disambiguation of 'to a greater degree': 99 1
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see on, steroids.
    Sense id: en-on_steroids-en-prep_phrase-CsLMZby9 Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 52 48 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 53 47
{
  "etymology_text": "The literal sense is from anabolic steroid use as illicit drug use for doping, to become bulked up; the figurative sense is an extension.",
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "prep_phrase",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "52 48",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
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          "_dis": "53 47",
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          "source": "w+disamb"
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          "_dis": "67 33",
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          "source": "w+disamb"
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          "_dis": "56 44",
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          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "61 39",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
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          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "61 39",
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          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "61 39",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Hebrew translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "62 38",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Italian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "coordinate_terms": [
        {
          "word": "on wheels"
        },
        {
          "word": "pro max"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              17,
              28
            ]
          ],
          "text": "Panic is anxiety on steroids",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              64,
              75
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "c. 2000, “Processor Modes”, in (help manual):",
          "text": "When a processor is running in real mode, it acts like an \"8088 on steroids\". What this means is that it has the advantage of speed, but it otherwise accesses memory with the same restrictions of the original 8088: a limit of 1 MB of addressable RAM, and slow memory access that doesn't take advantage of the full 32-bit processing of modern CPUs.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2005 September 19, Tariq Malik, “NASA's New Moon Plans: 'Apollo on Steroids'”, in space.com:",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              243,
              254
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2016 October 14, “Spin To Survive: How 'Saturn On Steroids' Keeps From Self-Destructing”, in NPR:",
          "text": "\"This planet is much larger than Jupiter or Saturn, and its ring system is roughly 200 times larger than Saturn's rings are today,\" Mamajek said at the time.\n\"You could think of it as kind of a super Saturn.\"\nOr, as others have put it, Saturn on steroids.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              88,
              99
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2019 June 8, Kitty Empire, “Madonna: Madame X review – a splendidly bizarre return to form”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "Medellín, the first track from Madonna’s 14th studio album, arrived like La Isla Bonita on steroids",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To a greater degree, exaggerating the characteristics of the previously named object."
      ],
      "id": "en-on_steroids-en-prep_phrase-mOP3J7js",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, informal, usually after the name of a place or thing) To a greater degree, exaggerating the characteristics of the previously named object."
      ],
      "raw_tags": [
        "after the name of a place or thing"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic",
        "informal",
        "usually"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "lang_code": "fi",
          "sense": "to a greater degree",
          "word": "potenssiin kymmenen"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "to a greater degree",
          "word": "auf Anabolika"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "to a greater degree",
          "word": "auf Speed"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "he",
          "lang": "Hebrew",
          "lang_code": "he",
          "sense": "to a greater degree",
          "word": "על סטרואידים"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "99 1",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "lang_code": "it",
          "sense": "to a greater degree",
          "word": "all'ennesima potenza"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "52 48",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "53 47",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see on, steroids."
      ],
      "id": "en-on_steroids-en-prep_phrase-CsLMZby9",
      "links": [
        [
          "on",
          "on#English"
        ],
        [
          "steroids",
          "steroids#English"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-on steroids.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1d/En-au-on_steroids.ogg/En-au-on_steroids.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/En-au-on_steroids.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "on steroids"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English prepositional phrases",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with Finnish translations",
    "Terms with German translations",
    "Terms with Hebrew translations",
    "Terms with Italian translations"
  ],
  "etymology_text": "The literal sense is from anabolic steroid use as illicit drug use for doping, to become bulked up; the figurative sense is an extension.",
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "prep_phrase",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English idioms",
        "English informal terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "coordinate_terms": [
        {
          "word": "on wheels"
        },
        {
          "word": "pro max"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              17,
              28
            ]
          ],
          "text": "Panic is anxiety on steroids",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              64,
              75
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "c. 2000, “Processor Modes”, in (help manual):",
          "text": "When a processor is running in real mode, it acts like an \"8088 on steroids\". What this means is that it has the advantage of speed, but it otherwise accesses memory with the same restrictions of the original 8088: a limit of 1 MB of addressable RAM, and slow memory access that doesn't take advantage of the full 32-bit processing of modern CPUs.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2005 September 19, Tariq Malik, “NASA's New Moon Plans: 'Apollo on Steroids'”, in space.com:",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              243,
              254
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2016 October 14, “Spin To Survive: How 'Saturn On Steroids' Keeps From Self-Destructing”, in NPR:",
          "text": "\"This planet is much larger than Jupiter or Saturn, and its ring system is roughly 200 times larger than Saturn's rings are today,\" Mamajek said at the time.\n\"You could think of it as kind of a super Saturn.\"\nOr, as others have put it, Saturn on steroids.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              88,
              99
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2019 June 8, Kitty Empire, “Madonna: Madame X review – a splendidly bizarre return to form”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "Medellín, the first track from Madonna’s 14th studio album, arrived like La Isla Bonita on steroids",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To a greater degree, exaggerating the characteristics of the previously named object."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, informal, usually after the name of a place or thing) To a greater degree, exaggerating the characteristics of the previously named object."
      ],
      "raw_tags": [
        "after the name of a place or thing"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic",
        "informal",
        "usually"
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see on, steroids."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "on",
          "on#English"
        ],
        [
          "steroids",
          "steroids#English"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-on steroids.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1d/En-au-on_steroids.ogg/En-au-on_steroids.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/En-au-on_steroids.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "lang_code": "fi",
      "sense": "to a greater degree",
      "word": "potenssiin kymmenen"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "to a greater degree",
      "word": "auf Anabolika"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "to a greater degree",
      "word": "auf Speed"
    },
    {
      "code": "he",
      "lang": "Hebrew",
      "lang_code": "he",
      "sense": "to a greater degree",
      "word": "על סטרואידים"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "lang_code": "it",
      "sense": "to a greater degree",
      "word": "all'ennesima potenza"
    }
  ],
  "word": "on steroids"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-09-09 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-09-02 using wiktextract (ccec6f1 and 4deed51). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.