surgery
noun
sur·gery
ˈsər-jə-rē 
ˈsərj-
plural surgeries
1
: a branch of medicine concerned with diseases and conditions requiring or amenable to operative or manual procedures
2
: alterations made as if by surgery
literary surgery
3
a
British
: a physician's or dentist's office
b
: a room or area where surgery is performed
Examples of surgery in a Sentence
He's a specialist in brain surgery.
The doctor has recommended surgery.
He has recently undergone surgery on his shoulder.
a doctor who has performed many surgeries
The patient was taken directly to surgery.
Recent Examples on the Web
Mondon underwent meniscus surgery in high school, labrum surgery in 2022, foot surgery in 2023 and missed four games in 2024 due to another foot injury.
—
James Boyd, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2025
Sometimes people experiencing severe emotional stress, poor nutrition, significant weight loss, surgery, childbirth or a high fever caused by illness can develop a condition called telogen effluvium, which causes hair to spend less time in the anagen phase and appear thinner.
—Hannah Yasharoff, USA Today, 25 Apr. 2025
And even though many surgeries resulted in injury or death, reporting was unreliable, Cosgrove and colleagues pointed out in a recent review.
—Frieda Klotz, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Apr. 2025
Bolsonaro underwent a 12-hour surgery on April 13 to remove intestinal adhesions and reconstruct the abdominal wall.
—Gabriela Sá Pessoa, Los Angeles Times, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for surgery
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James Boyd, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2025
Sometimes people experiencing severe emotional stress, poor nutrition, significant weight loss, surgery, childbirth or a high fever caused by illness can develop a condition called telogen effluvium, which causes hair to spend less time in the anagen phase and appear thinner.
—Hannah Yasharoff, USA Today, 25 Apr. 2025
And even though many surgeries resulted in injury or death, reporting was unreliable, Cosgrove and colleagues pointed out in a recent review.
—Frieda Klotz, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Apr. 2025
Bolsonaro underwent a 12-hour surgery on April 13 to remove intestinal adhesions and reconstruct the abdominal wall.
—Gabriela Sá Pessoa, Los Angeles Times, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for surgery
Cite this Entry
“Surgery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surgery. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surgery
noun
sur·gery
ˈsərj-(ə-)rē
plural surgeries
1
: medical science concerned with the correction of physical defects, the repair and healing of injuries, and the treatment of diseased conditions especially by operations
2
a
: the work done by a surgeon
3
: a room or area where surgery is performed
Etymology
Middle English surgerie "surgery," from early French cirurgerie, surgerie (same meaning), from Latin chirurgia (same meaning), derived from Greek cheirourgos "surgeon," from cheirourgos "doing by hand," from cheir "hand" and ergon "work"
Medical Definition
surgery
noun
sur·gery
ˈsərj-(ə-)rē
plural surgeries
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