CBD glossary

218 terms, acronyms and bits of jargon you will meet when reading about CBD in Australia, each explained in a sentence or two.

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11-hydroxy-THC: A potent, intoxicating compound the liver makes from THC, especially when THC is swallowed. It is one reason edibles feel stronger and last longer than inhaled cannabis.
2-AG (2-arachidonoylglycerol): One of the body's two main endocannabinoids, and the most abundant one in the brain.
5-HT1A receptor: A serotonin receptor. Laboratory studies suggest CBD acts on it, which is one proposed explanation for effects seen in anxiety research.
7-hydroxy-CBD: An active compound the liver makes when it breaks down CBD.

A

Adverse event: Any unwanted medical occurrence during treatment or a trial, whether or not the treatment caused it.
Agonist: A substance that switches a receptor on.
Ahpra: The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency, which regulates doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other registered health practitioners.
AICIS: The Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme, which regulates the chemicals used in cosmetics.
Allosteric modulator: A substance that changes how strongly a receptor responds, without switching it on or blocking it directly.
Analgesic: Relieving pain.
Anandamide: One of the body's two main endocannabinoids. Its name comes from the Sanskrit word for bliss.
Antagonist: A substance that blocks a receptor so that it cannot be switched on.
Anti-inflammatory: Reducing inflammation.
Anticonvulsant: Preventing or reducing seizures.
Anxiolytic: Reducing anxiety.
APVMA: The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority, which regulates medicines for animals.
ARTG (Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods): The official register of medicines and devices that can lawfully be supplied in Australia.
AS/NZS 4308: The Australian and New Zealand standard for workplace drug testing in urine. Read more
AS/NZS 4760: The Australian and New Zealand standard for workplace drug testing in oral fluid. Read more
Australian Border Force (ABF): The agency that controls what crosses the Australian border and seizes unlawful imports.
Authorised Prescriber (AP): A practitioner the TGA has authorised to prescribe a particular unapproved medicine to a class of patients without applying for each one.

B

Balanced: Describes a product with roughly equal amounts of CBD and THC.
Balm: A thick, oil-based preparation applied to the skin. Also called a salve.
Batch number: The code on a product that links it to the production run it came from and to that run's test results.
Beta-caryophyllene: A terpene with a peppery smell, also found in black pepper and cloves. Unusually for a terpene, it can bind to the CB2 receptor.
Bioavailability: The share of a dose that reaches your bloodstream. For swallowed CBD it is low, and it rises when CBD is taken with food.
Biomass: The harvested plant material that goes into extraction.
Biosynthesis: Making cannabinoids with engineered yeast or bacteria instead of extracting them from plants.
Biphasic effect: When a substance has one effect at a low dose and a different or opposite effect at a high dose.
Broad spectrum: An extract that keeps the plant's other cannabinoids and terpenes but has had the THC removed. Read more

C

Cannabidiol (CBD): One of the main compounds in the cannabis plant. It does not cause a high. In Australia it is a medicine available on prescription. Read more
Cannabinoid: Any compound that acts on the body's cannabinoid system. Cannabinoids can come from plants, from the body itself or from a laboratory.
Cannabinoid profile: The list of cannabinoids in a product and the amount of each.
Cannabis sativa L.: The botanical name of the cannabis plant. Hemp and marijuana are both this species; the difference is how much THC the plant makes.
Capsule: A swallowed dose form containing a measured amount of CBD. Soft versions filled with oil are called softgels.
Carrier oil: The oil in which CBD is dissolved, such as MCT, olive or hemp seed oil.
CB1 receptor: A cannabinoid receptor found mainly in the brain and nervous system. THC causes a high by switching it on. CBD does not.
CB2 receptor: A cannabinoid receptor found mainly on immune cells.
CBC (cannabichromene): A minor cannabinoid that does not cause a high. It has been studied mostly in the laboratory.
CBD oil: CBD dissolved in a carrier oil and taken by mouth. It is a common prescribed form of CBD in Australia.
CBD-dominant: Describes a product that is mostly CBD with a small amount of THC. In Australia, a product in which CBD is less than 98% of the cannabinoids is a Schedule 8 medicine.
CBDA (cannabidiolic acid): The raw, acidic form of CBD found in the fresh plant. Heat converts it to CBD.
CBDV (cannabidivarin): A close chemical relative of CBD that has been studied for epilepsy and autism.
CBG (cannabigerol): A minor cannabinoid that does not cause a high. Human research on it is at a very early stage.
CBGA (cannabigerolic acid): The "parent" compound in the cannabis plant, from which the plant makes the acid forms of THC, CBD and CBC.
CBN (cannabinol): A cannabinoid that forms as THC ages and breaks down. It is often marketed for sleep, with little human evidence behind the claim.
Certificate of analysis (COA): A laboratory report for one specific batch of product, showing how much of each cannabinoid it contains and whether it passed tests for contaminants.
Chemovar: A cannabis variety defined by its chemistry, such as how much CBD and THC it produces, as opposed to its name or appearance.
Chromatography: A technique for separating the compounds in a mixture. Manufacturers use it to remove THC, and laboratories use it to measure what is in a product.
Cmax: The highest concentration a medicine reaches in the blood after a dose.
CO2 extraction: Extraction that uses pressurised carbon dioxide as the solvent. It leaves no solvent residue.
Cochrane review: A systematic review produced by Cochrane, an independent international network known for rigorous methods.
Compounding: When a pharmacist prepares a medicine to order for an individual patient.
Confirmatory test: A precise laboratory test used to verify a positive screening result.
Consumer Medicine Information (CMI): The official plain-language leaflet for a registered medicine, written for patients.
Contraindication: A condition or circumstance in which a medicine should not be used.
Crude oil: The unrefined extract that comes out of the first extraction step.
Crystallisation: The step that turns refined extract into pure CBD isolate.
Cultivar: A plant variety bred and grown for particular traits. Often called a "strain" in cannabis.
Cut-off level: The concentration above which a drug test is reported as positive.
CYP2C19: A liver enzyme that breaks down CBD and that CBD inhibits. This matters for medicines such as clobazam.
CYP3A4: A liver enzyme that breaks down CBD and a large share of all prescription medicines.
Cytochrome P450 (CYP450): A family of liver enzymes that break down most medicines. CBD is broken down by them and can also slow them, which is how it interacts with other medicines. Read more

D

Decarboxylation: Heating cannabis to convert the acid forms of cannabinoids into their active forms: CBDA into CBD, and THCA into THC.
Delta-8 THC: A form of THC that is slightly less potent than the usual delta-9 form. It is widely sold in parts of the United States. In Australia it is controlled in the same way as other forms of THC.
Dependence: When the body adapts to a substance so that stopping it causes symptoms.
Distillate: A refined, concentrated cannabis extract produced by distillation.
Distillation: Purifying an extract by heating it and collecting compounds as they boil off at different temperatures.
Double-blind: Describes a trial in which neither the participants nor the researchers know who is getting the real treatment until the end.
Down-scheduling: Moving a substance to a less restrictive schedule.
Dravet syndrome: A rare, severe form of epilepsy that begins in infancy.
Dried flower: The dried buds of the cannabis plant, prescribed for use in a vaporiser.
Drug interaction: When one medicine changes the level or effect of another. Read more
Duration: How long the effects of a dose last.
DVA: The Department of Veterans' Affairs.

E

Edible: Any cannabis product that is eaten.
Endocannabinoid: A cannabinoid made by your own body. The two main ones are anandamide and 2-AG.
Endocannabinoid system (ECS): A signalling network found throughout the body, made up of cannabinoid receptors, the endocannabinoids that act on them and the enzymes that make and break them down. Read more
Entourage effect: The idea that the compounds in cannabis work better together than alone. It is widely used in marketing, but the evidence for it in people is limited. Read more
Enzyme inhibition: When one substance slows the enzyme that breaks down another, causing the second to build up in the body.
Epidyolex: A registered pharmaceutical CBD oral solution, approved in Australia as an add-on treatment for seizures in Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome from age 2. Read more
eScript: An electronic prescription, sent to your phone as a token that a pharmacy scans.
Ethanol extraction: Extraction that uses alcohol as the solvent.
Expiry date: The date until which the maker guarantees the product meets its specification when stored correctly.
Extraction: The process of separating cannabinoids from plant material.

F

FAAH (fatty acid amide hydrolase): The enzyme that breaks down anandamide.
First-pass metabolism: The breakdown of a swallowed medicine by the gut and liver before it reaches the rest of the body.
Fitness for work: An employer's assessment of whether a worker can do their job safely.
Flavonoid: A member of a large family of plant pigments found in fruit, vegetables and cannabis.
FSANZ: Food Standards Australia New Zealand, which sets the rules for hemp seed foods.
Full spectrum: An extract that keeps the plant's other cannabinoids and terpenes, including a small amount of THC. Read more

G

GC-MS: Gas chromatography with mass spectrometry: a laboratory method used to measure terpenes and solvents and to confirm drug-test results.
GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice): The quality standard that medicine manufacturers must meet, covering premises, processes, testing and record-keeping.
GPR55: A receptor that CBD blocks. This is one proposed explanation for how CBD reduces seizures.
Gummy: A chewable, lolly-like dose form. Read more

H

Hair test: A drug test on hair, which can show use over a period of months.
Half-life: The time it takes for the amount of a medicine in your blood to fall by half.
Heavy metals: Lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury. Hemp readily absorbs them from soil, so products are tested for them.
Hemp: Cannabis grown to contain very little THC, for its fibre, seed or CBD. Read more
Hemp seed oil: A food oil pressed from hemp seeds. It contains almost no CBD or THC (the legal limits are 75 mg/kg of CBD and 10 mg/kg of THC). It is sold legally in supermarkets and is not the same thing as CBD oil. Read more
HHC (hexahydrocannabinol): A semi-synthetic compound with THC-like intoxicating effects, usually made by chemically altering other cannabinoids.
HPLC: High-performance liquid chromatography: the standard laboratory method for measuring cannabinoids in a product.
HREC (human research ethics committee): A committee that reviews research and, in some cases, Authorised Prescriber applications.
Humulene: A terpene with a woody, hoppy smell, also found in hops.
Hydrocarbon extraction: Extraction that uses butane or propane as the solvent.

I

Immunoassay: A quick screening test that uses antibodies to detect a drug. It can sometimes react to similar compounds, so positives are confirmed in a laboratory.
In vitro: Done in a dish or test tube, as opposed to in a living animal or person.
Industrial hemp: The legal farming category for low-THC cannabis. Growers need a state or territory licence, and the crop must stay under a set THC limit.
Intoxicating: Causing a high or impairment. THC is intoxicating. CBD is not.
Isolate: Purified CBD with the other plant compounds removed. Read more

L

Label claim: The amount of an ingredient that the label says the product contains.
Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: A rare, severe form of epilepsy that begins in childhood and involves several types of seizure.
Limit of detection (LOD): The smallest amount of a substance that a test can detect.
Limit of quantitation (LOQ): The smallest amount of a substance that a test can measure reliably.
Limonene: A terpene with a citrus smell, also found in the peel of lemons and oranges.
Linalool: A terpene with a floral smell, also found in lavender.
Lipophilic: Fat-loving. CBD dissolves in fat and not in water, which is why it is sold in oil and absorbed better with a meal.
Liposomal: Wrapped in microscopic bubbles of fat, with the aim of improving absorption.
Listed medicine (AUST L): A lower-risk medicine, such as many vitamins, that the TGA has assessed for quality and safety but not for whether it works.
Liver function tests (LFTs): Blood tests, including ALT and AST, that show whether the liver is under strain. The prescribing information for prescription CBD in epilepsy recommends checking them before and during treatment.
Lozenge: A dose form that dissolves slowly in the mouth. Also called a pastille.

M

Marijuana: A common name for cannabis with enough THC to cause a high.
MCT oil: Medium-chain triglyceride oil, usually made from coconut. It is the most common carrier oil in CBD products.
Meta-analysis: A statistical method that combines the results of several trials into one overall estimate.
mg/mL: Milligrams per millilitre: the amount of CBD in each millilitre of oil. This is the strength of the product. Read more
Microbial testing: A laboratory test for bacteria, yeast and mould.
Mycotoxins: Poisons produced by moulds. Aflatoxins are one group.
Myrcene: A terpene with an earthy, musky smell, also found in hops and mangoes.

N

Nabiximols (Sativex): A registered mouth spray containing THC and CBD, approved for muscle spasticity in multiple sclerosis.
Nanoemulsion: A mixture of very small oil droplets in water, intended to improve how much CBD is absorbed.
Narcotic Drugs Act 1967: The federal law under which medicinal cannabis cultivation and manufacture are licensed.
NATA: The National Association of Testing Authorities, which accredits Australian laboratories as competent to carry out specific tests.
ND (not detected): A lab result meaning the substance was below the test's limit of detection. It does not prove the amount is zero.
Nurse practitioner: A nurse with advanced training who is authorised to diagnose and prescribe.

O

Observational study: A study that follows people without assigning them a treatment. It can show a link but cannot prove cause.
Off-label: Using a registered medicine for a purpose other than the one it was approved for.
Office of Drug Control (ODC): The federal body that licenses the cultivation, manufacture, import and export of medicinal cannabis.
Onset: How long a medicine takes to start working after a dose.
Oral: Swallowed.
Oral fluid test: A drug test on saliva. It mainly reflects recent use.
Oral spray: A pump that delivers a measured dose into the mouth.
Oral syringe: A needle-free syringe marked in millilitres, used to measure a dose of oil accurately.
Oromucosal: Absorbed through the lining of the mouth.

P

PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme): The federal scheme that subsidises the cost of listed medicines.
Personal Importation Scheme: The rule that lets people import small amounts of some unapproved medicines for their own use. The TGA says cannabis and cannabis products, including CBD, are excluded from it.
Pesticide screen: A laboratory test for residues of agricultural chemicals.
Pharmaceutical grade: Made to the standards required of a medicine. The phrase is also used loosely in marketing, where it guarantees nothing.
Phytocannabinoid: A cannabinoid made by a plant. CBD and THC are the best known of more than a hundred found in cannabis.
Pinene: A terpene with the smell of pine needles.
Placebo: A dummy treatment that looks like the real one but has no active ingredient.
Poisons Standard (SUSMP): The national legal instrument that sorts medicines and chemicals into schedules, which determine how each can be supplied.
Preclinical study: Research done in cells or animals before a treatment is tested in people.
Presence offence: An offence committed by driving with a detectable amount of a drug in the body, whether or not the driver is impaired. Read more
Private prescription: A prescription for a medicine that is not subsidised, so the patient pays the full price.
Product Information (PI): The official technical document for a registered medicine, written for health professionals.
Psychoactive: Acting on the brain or mind. Strictly, CBD is psychoactive because it can affect anxiety and seizures, but it is not intoxicating.

R

Randomised controlled trial (RCT): A study in which people are randomly assigned to receive a treatment or a comparison, usually a placebo. It is the fairest test of whether a treatment works. Read more
Ratio: The proportion of CBD to THC in a product. A 20:1 oil has twenty parts CBD to one part THC.
Real-time prescription monitoring: State and territory systems, such as SafeScript and QScript, that show prescribers and pharmacists a patient's history of monitored medicines.
Registered medicine (AUST R): A medicine the TGA has fully assessed for quality, safety and effectiveness. Its label carries an AUST R number.
Residual solvents: Traces of extraction solvent left behind in a finished product.
Roadside drug test: A police saliva test for certain drugs, including THC. It does not test for CBD. Read more

S

SAS Category A: A notification pathway for patients who are seriously ill with a condition from which death is reasonably likely within months.
SAS Category B (SAS-B): An application pathway under which a prescriber asks the TGA to approve an unapproved medicine for one patient.
Schedule 2 (S2): Pharmacy medicine: sold only in pharmacies, from the open shelf.
Schedule 3 (S3): Pharmacist only medicine: kept behind the counter and sold after a conversation with a pharmacist, with no prescription. For CBD, this schedule applies only to products registered on the ARTG. Read more
Schedule 4 (S4): Prescription only medicine. CBD products in which CBD makes up 98% or more of the cannabinoids are in this schedule.
Schedule 8 (S8): Controlled drug: a prescription medicine with extra restrictions because of its potential for misuse. Medicinal cannabis products containing THC, including "CBD-dominant" products with more than 2% other cannabinoids, are in this schedule.
Schedule 9 (S9): Prohibited substance. Cannabis outside the medical and hemp systems is in this schedule.
Scheduling: The national system that classifies medicines and chemicals by how tightly their supply is controlled.
Solventless: Extracted using only heat, pressure, ice or water, with no chemical solvent.
Somnolence: Drowsiness. One of the most common side effects of CBD at higher doses.
Special Access Scheme (SAS): The TGA pathway that lets a health practitioner access an unapproved medicine for an individual patient. Patients cannot apply themselves.
Sponsor: The company legally responsible for a medicine supplied in Australia.
Sport Integrity Australia: Australia's national anti-doping organisation.
Stability testing: Testing that checks a product keeps its strength and quality over its shelf life.
Start low, go slow: A common clinical approach to dosing cannabinoids: begin with a small dose and raise it gradually. It is a description of practice, not a formal TGA rule. Read more
Steady state: The point at which regular dosing has built up a stable level of a medicine in the blood.
Strength: How concentrated a product is, usually given in mg/mL for oils or mg per capsule. Also called potency.
Sublingual: Held under the tongue.
Supercritical CO2: Carbon dioxide held at a temperature and pressure where it behaves as both a liquid and a gas, which makes it a good solvent.
Suppository: A dose form inserted into the rectum. A pessary is the vaginal equivalent.
Synthetic cannabinoid: A cannabinoid made in a laboratory. The term covers both pharmaceutical medicines and dangerous illicit drugs sold under names like "spice", which are unrelated to CBD.
Systematic review: A study that finds and assesses all the good research on a question using a fixed, transparent method.

T

Telehealth: A health consultation held by phone or video.
Terpene: An aromatic compound made by many plants. Terpenes give cannabis, pine, citrus and lavender their smells.
Terpene profile: The list of terpenes in a product and the amount of each.
Terpinolene: A terpene with a fresh, herbal and slightly fruity smell.
TGA (Therapeutic Goods Administration): Australia's national regulator of medicines and medical devices. Read more
TGO 93: The Therapeutic Goods Order that sets the quality standard for medicinal cannabis products supplied in Australia.
THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol): The compound in cannabis that causes the high. It is more tightly controlled than CBD, and it is what roadside and workplace drug tests look for.
THC-COOH: An inactive breakdown product of THC. Urine drug tests look for this compound, which can linger for days or weeks after use.
THCA (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid): The raw, acidic form of THC found in the fresh plant. It is not intoxicating until heat converts it to THC.
THCV (tetrahydrocannabivarin): A close chemical relative of THC whose effects differ from THC and vary with dose.
Therapeutic Goods Act 1989: The federal law that governs medicines in Australia, including how they may be advertised.
Therapeutic Goods Advertising Code: The rules for advertising medicines in Australia. Prescription medicines cannot be advertised to the public.
Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE): Permission for an athlete to use a prohibited medicine for a genuine medical need.
Third-party testing: Testing done by a laboratory that is independent of the company that made the product.
Tincture: Strictly, an extract made with alcohol. The word is often used loosely for any CBD oil.
Titration: Adjusting a dose step by step, under a prescriber's direction, to find the lowest amount that works.
Tmax: The time it takes for a medicine to reach its highest concentration in the blood.
Tolerance: Needing a larger dose over time to get the same effect.
Topical: Applied to the skin to act where it is applied.
Total THC: The THC in a product plus the THC that its THCA would become when heated.
Transdermal: Applied to the skin and designed to pass through it into the bloodstream.
Traveller's exemption: The rule that lets a person entering Australia carry a limited supply of their own prescribed medicine.
Trichome: A tiny, mushroom-shaped resin gland on the cannabis flower. Trichomes are where the plant makes its cannabinoids and terpenes.
TRPV1: A channel on nerve cells that senses heat and pain. It is the same channel that responds to chilli. CBD interacts with it.

U

Unapproved medicine: A medicine that is not on the ARTG. Most CBD products prescribed in Australia are unapproved medicines, supplied through special access pathways. Read more
Urine drug screen: A drug test on urine. It can detect use from days or weeks earlier.

V

Vape cartridge: A pre-filled container of extract that attaches to a vaporiser.
Vaporiser: A device that heats a cannabis product until it releases vapour, without burning it.

W

WADA Prohibited List: The World Anti-Doping Agency's list of substances banned in sport. CBD is not prohibited. THC is prohibited in competition. From 1 January 2027, natural cannabinoids such as CBN and CBG are also no longer prohibited. Read more
Wafer: A thin tablet that dissolves in the mouth or under the tongue.
Water-soluble CBD: CBD processed into tiny droplets so that it mixes with water. CBD itself does not dissolve in water.
Whole-plant extract: Another name for a full-spectrum extract.
Winterisation: Chilling an extract so that waxes and fats can be filtered out.
Withdrawal: Symptoms that appear after stopping a substance the body has become dependent on.