Mürgitada

Mürgitada is Estonian a verb meaning to administer a drug or toxin to another person in order to intoxicate, sedate, or poison them. The act is typically intentional and carried out without the recipient’s informed consent. The word is used for both medicinal contexts in very rare cases and, more commonly, criminal contexts involving drugging or poisoning.

In linguistic use, mürgitada is transitive and requires a person as the direct object, for example: ta mürgitab kedagi (he drugs/poisons someone). Related forms include mürgitus (poisoning) and mürgitamine (the act of drugging or poisoning). The term denotes both the deliberate introduction of a harmful substance and the resulting state of intoxication or impairment.

Etymology derives from the noun mürg, meaning poison, with a derivational suffix that forms a verb indicating the action of applying or causing poisoning. The word carries strong negative connotations and is most often encountered in legal, criminal, or medical-ethical discussions, as well as in news reporting about poisoning or drugging incidents.

In contemporary usage, mürgitada is a formal, somewhat technical term. It is more common in written Estonian than in colloquial speech, where speakers may use more general phrases such as “to give someone a drug” or simply “to poison.” The act is illegal in most jurisdictions and is treated as a serious crime, with investigations focusing on intent, the substance used, and the impact on the victim.