surgeon general

American  

noun

• surgeons general
  plural

1. the chief of medical services in one of the armed forces.

2. (initial capital letters) the head of the U.S. Bureau of Public Health or, in some states, of a state health agency.

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surgeon general British  

noun

1. (in the British, US, and certain other armies and navies) the senior officer of the medical service

2. the head of the public health service in the US

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• surgeons general
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of surgeon general

First recorded in 1770–80

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

surgeon general

The surgeon general declared a loneliness epidemic in 2023, but it was already happening.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

And yet, we’re the first generation to receive a formal advisory on parental stress from the surgeon general.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

Social isolation among older adults alone accounts for about $6.7 billion in excess Medicare spending a year, largely due to increased hospital and nursing-facility spending, the former surgeon general said in a report.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 19, 2026

Lurie said that the surgeon general has essentially two formal functions in the government.

From Salon ● Jan. 7, 2026

On September 13, seventy top cancer researchers from around the world would gather to present their research, he said, and hundreds of people would attend, including the mayor of Washington, D.C., and the surgeon general.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

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