How to Use gateway drug in a Sentence

gateway drug

noun
  • The ban stemmed from a fear that pinball was somehow a gateway drug to a life of crime.
    — Ryan Smith, Chicago Reader, 19 June 2018
  • The tender white fish is like a gateway drug to cooking with other types of fish.
    — Audrey Bruno, SELF, 18 Sep. 2018
  • In the age of the hypebeast, shoes are like the gateway drug for resellers.
    — Saira Mueller, Wired, 16 Nov. 2021
  • In some cases, the flame emoji is the gateway drug to cheating.
    — Olivia Petter, Vogue, 19 Aug. 2024
  • For some, the rental e-bikes from Jump and Baywheels served as a gateway drug.
    — Rachel Swan, San Francisco Chronicle, 11 Jan. 2020
  • Makary has warned that marijuana is a gateway drug and not as safe as people think.
    — Will Yakowicz, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024
  • Any one of Carlotto's novels is like a gateway drug to the rest.
    — The Week Staff, The Week, 7 June 2021
  • So the Stones were my gateway drug to all these incredible things.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 22 Dec. 2023
  • Her gateway drug to abandonment is, as is often the case, a business trip.
    — Amanda Hess, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2022
  • But in the movie, that act is merely a gateway drug to the full-on loopiness that follows.
    — Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 13 July 2018
  • With a slushbox, these tiny titans of performance can serve as a sort of gateway drug to sports cars.
    — Drew Dorian, Car and Driver, 21 Sep. 2022
  • Chris Christie on Morning Joe is calling pot a gateway drug again.
    — The Tylt, cleveland.com, 31 Oct. 2017
  • The mixed reality glasses will be the gateway drug to the future.
    — Chris Smith, BGR, 7 June 2022
  • Of course, as everyone knows, holiday cookies are a gateway drug to love.
    — Amy MacKelden, ELLE, 23 Nov. 2022
  • Prior work by Pierce and his team have found e-cigarettes can function as a gateway drug for many teens.
    — Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 7 Feb. 2022
  • Ah yes, the gateway drug video that seduced me into the world of Siwanators (as fans are known).
    — Jenny Singer, Glamour, 15 Oct. 2021
  • Marijuana is not a gateway drug.
    — Mike Gimbel, Baltimore Sun, 15 Jan. 2026
  • Now new research suggests that cannabis may not be a gateway drug to creativity after all.
    — Richard Sima, Anchorage Daily News, 21 Apr. 2023
  • Like a lot of people, Metallica was a gateway drug into heavy music for me.
    — Liza Lentini, SPIN, 4 Mar. 2022
  • The same goes for olive oil, at once a simple grocery store purchase and a gateway drug into complete culinary nerd-dom.
    — Brette Warshaw, GQ, 26 Apr. 2018
  • If weed is indeed a gateway drug, Waking Life is something like a gateway film.
    — Vulture Editors, Vulture, 20 Apr. 2021
  • If weed is indeed a gateway drug, Waking Life is something like a gateway film.
    — Vulture Editors, Vulture, 20 Apr. 2021
  • Pets are the gateway drug to making a lasting commitment, never forget that.
    — Chelsea Peng, Marie Claire, 17 Oct. 2017
  • The Grateful Dead is like a gateway drug for a lot of young people now to get into bluegrass and that kind of thing.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 26 Mar. 2024
  • The tension over how to operate a legal market for a substance once reviled as a gateway drug to heroin is not new.
    — Karina Elwood, Washington Post, 26 Aug. 2022
  • In the same way Docs are a gateway drug into style, so Rick has become an entry point into fashion.
    — Steff Yotka, Vogue, 15 Mar. 2021
  • Congress’s gateway drug to spending is back, and Members are already on their way to mainlining.
    — The Editorial Board, WSJ, 10 June 2021
  • Cannabis only drew connotations of nickel and dime bags, and as a gateway drug that would eventually lead you down a dark path.
    — Siraad Dirshe, refinery29.com, 20 Apr. 2021
  • Either way, there's no better gateway drug to philately than a howling V-8.
    — Steve Rousseau, Popular Mechanics, 22 Feb. 2013
  • But the argument for prohibition makes even less sense if Juul serves as a gateway drug and gets kids hooked on nicotine.
    — James P. Sutton, National Review, 4 July 2019

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gateway drug.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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