Emily Dickinson Lexicon

O'PI-ATE, n. [from opium.]

1. Primarily, a medicine of a thicker consistence than sirup, prepared with opium. Encyc. A soft electuary. Electuaries when soft are called opiata. Parr. But in modern usage generally,
2. Any medicine that contains opium and has the quality of inducing sleep or repose; a narcotic. Encyc.
3. That which induces rest or inaction; that which quiets uneasiness. They chose atheism as an opiate. Bentley.