surgery

American  

[sur-juh-ree] / ˈsɜr dʒə ri /

noun

plural

surgeries

1. the art, practice, or work of treating diseases, injuries, or deformities by manual or operative procedures.

2. the branch of medicine concerned with such treatment.

3. treatment, as an operation, performed by a surgeon.

4. a room or place for surgical operations.

5. British. a doctor's or dentist's office or office hours.

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surgery British  

/ ˈsɜːdʒərɪ /

noun

1. the branch of medicine concerned with treating disease, injuries, etc, by means of manual or operative procedures, esp by incision into the body

2. the performance of such procedures by a surgeon

3. a place where a doctor, dentist, etc, can be consulted

4. an occasion when an MP, lawyer, etc, is available for consultation

5. an operating theatre where surgical operations are performed

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Other Word Forms

• presurgery adjective

Etymology

Origin of surgery

1250–1300; Middle English surgerie < Old French cirurgerie chirurgery

Example Sentences

Club record £125m signing Isak has been ruled out since December, having fractured his leg and had ankle surgery.

From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026

Then on Feb. 4, flames engulfed the Vista Del Mar Avenue home of Maria “Chelo” Vazquez, 76, who was recovering from a hip surgery following a bad fall.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

It led to the widespread belief that the splitter was the cause of the rapidly increasing rate of Tommy John surgery.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

Since their invention in the 1960s, lasers have transformed both science and daily life, powering everything from grocery store scanners to vision-correcting surgery.

From Science Daily • Mar. 31, 2026

Ever since I tore my ACL in October and had the surgery to reattach the tendon, I haven’t been able to do anything in PE.

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day