nostrum

[Lat. neut. sing. of noster=ours, i. e., a special drug or remedy known only to the maker or seller.] 1. A medicine, the composition and mode of preparation of which is kept secret by the inventor or proprietor, in order to secure a monoply; a quack medicine. "Here drivelled the physician, Whose most infallible nostrum was at fault." R. Browning: Para cels us, iii. 2. A remedy, scheme, or device proposed by a quack or crotchet monger in any department.