patent medicine

US /ˈpæt.ənt ˌmed.ɪ.sɪn/
UK /ˈpæt.ənt ˌmed.ɪ.sɪn/
"patent medicine" picture
1.

médecine brevetée, remède de bonne femme

a medicine made and sold under a patent and usually without a prescription, often with exaggerated claims of its effectiveness

:
In the old West, traveling salesmen often peddled various patent medicines.
Dans le vieil Ouest, les vendeurs itinérants colportaient souvent diverses médecines brevetées.
Many early patent medicines contained alcohol or opium.
De nombreuses médecines brevetées anciennes contenaient de l'alcool ou de l'opium.