Most pokemon supply about two words to human languages, but they are merely words derived from a pokemon's name which mean little in association with one another. The Toxicroak, however, provide us with the phrase "Toxic croak" for they can belch their venom in the form of a highly painful gas signaled not by sight or smell only by the sound of their voice. It has been compared to a perish song, but without its haunting beauty; it is "sung" in a frog's belching voice and does not backfire on the user.

The same can not be said of the trainer and any audience, so this attack is all but unknown in officially sanctioned pokemon matches. In unofficial matches, such as those between the police or would-be heroes and criminal gangs (of which Team Galactic is the most famous in recent years, although they have many antecedents) the Toxicroak thrive for precisely that ability. Team Galactic's outfits, like those of countless lawless groups in Sinnoh's history, are made of a special fabric which prevents Toxicroak venom from contacting the skin. This fact is rarely appreciated by law enforcement and vigilantes, for Galactic members have exposed faces, but a Toxicroak's gas is heavier than air and can not rise higher than the pokemon's height. Instead, it permeates the skin to painful effect, leaving most trainers in far too much agony to continue commanding their pokemon.

In the wild, Toxicroak croak only as a means to drive would-be predators and poachers away; their claws, not their voice, is how they hunt. The toxin is never fatal, for Toxicroak would far rather the victims of their venom survive to warn others to stay away – a tactic which most criminals in Sinnoh emulate, except against particularly tenacious enemies who can never accept defeat..