surgeon

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See also: Surgeon

English[edit]

Surgeons at work.

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English surgien, borrowed from Anglo-Norman surgien, sirogen (Old French surgien et al.), from Vulgar Latin *chīrurgiānus, from Latin chīrūrgia (surgery), from chīrurgus (surgeon), borrowed from Ancient Greek χειρουργός (kheirourgós), from χείρ (kheír, hand) + ἔργον (érgon, work). Doublet of chirurgeon.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

surgeon (plural surgeons, feminine surgeoness)

  1. One who performs surgery; a doctor who performs operations on people or animals.
    The surgeon refused to operate because the patient was her son.
  2. A surgeonfish.

Usage notes[edit]

  • In the UK, a surgeon holds a fellowship or a postgraduate degree in order to be known as a surgeon. For instance: FRCS or Master of Surgery
  • In the United States, a surgeon belongs to a subcategory of doctors (physicians) whose practice is largely or exclusively focused on surgery. They generally hold a credential from a medical body regulating the specialty in which they practice.

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Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

French[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Inherited from Middle French sourgon, sourjon, from Old French sorjon, sourjon (source) (1200s), from a conjugated form of sourdre (see sourjant) + -on, from Latin surgere. The modern spelling dates from 1541.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

surgeon m (plural surgeons)

  1. (botany) shoot (new growth from the trunk of a tree)
  2. (figurative) offshoot, rebirth (something that is reborn or grows out of something else again)
  3. (archaic) offspring, progeny (descendant of someone)

Further reading[edit]

Anagrams[edit]