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anaesthesia

[an-uh s-thee-zhuh]
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noun Medicine/Medical, Pathology.
  1. anesthesia.
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Related formsan·aes·thet·ic [an-uh s-thet-ik] /ˌæn əsˈθɛt ɪk/, adjective, nounan·aes·the·tist [uh-nes-thi-tist or, esp. British, uh-nees-] /əˈnɛs θɪ tɪst or, esp. British, əˈnis-/, nounsem·i·an·aes·thet·ic, adjective

anesthesia

or an·aes·the·sia

[an-uh s-thee-zhuh]
noun
  1. Medicine/Medical. general or local insensibility, as to pain and other sensation, induced by certain interventions or drugs to permit the performance of surgery or other painful procedures.
  2. Pathology. general loss of the senses of feeling, as pain, heat, cold, touch, and other less common varieties of sensation.
  3. Psychiatry. absence of sensation due to psychological processes, as in conversion disorders.
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Origin of anesthesia

1715–25; < New Latin < Greek anaisthēsía want of feeling. See an-1, esthesia
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

numbnessstuporunconsciousnessanalgesia

Examples from the Web for anaesthesia

Historical Examples

  • In Boston a monument has been erected to the discoverer of anaesthesia.

    Stories Of Georgia

    Joel Chandler Harris

  • Rather than hurt her he found himself forced to the use of anaesthesia, which he hated.

    McTeague

    Frank Norris

  • Anaesthesia, antisepsis, and the natural methods of cure were all anticipated in the medieval time.

    The Popes and Science

    James J. Walsh

  • Now I've stumbled on a soporific philosophy, and am getting all I can out of the anaesthesia, and you are reproaching me.

  • Anaesthesia, in its present sense, is truly a modern discovery, which is to be credited to the United States.

British Dictionary definitions for anaesthesia

anaesthesia

US anesthesia

noun
  1. local or general loss of bodily sensation, esp of touch, as the result of nerve damage or other abnormality
  2. loss of sensation, esp of pain, induced by drugs: called general anaesthesia when consciousness is lost and local anaesthesia when only a specific area of the body is involved
  3. a general dullness or lack of feeling
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Word Origin

C19: from New Latin, from Greek anaisthēsia absence of sensation, from an- + aisthēsis feeling

anesthesia

noun
  1. the usual US spelling of anaesthesia
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for anaesthesia

n.

1721, "loss of feeling," Modern Latin, from Greek anaisthesia "want of feeling, lack of sensation (to pleasure or pain)," from an- "without" (see an- (1)) + aisthesis "feeling," from PIE root *au- "to perceive" (see audience). As "a procedure for the prevention of pain in surgical operations," from 1846.

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anesthesia

n.

alternative spelling of anaesthesia (q.v.). See ae.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
anaesthesia in Medicine

anesthesia

(ăn′ĭs-thē′zhə)
n.
  1. Total or partial loss of sensation, especially tactile sensibility, induced by disease, injury, acupuncture, or an anesthetic.
  2. Local or general insensibility to pain with or without the loss of consciousness, induced by an anesthetic.
  3. A drug that induces partial or total loss of sensation and may be topical, local, regional, or general, depending on the method of administration and area of the body affected.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
anaesthesia in Science

anesthesia

[ăn′ĭs-thē′zhə]
  1. Total or partial loss of sensation to touch or pain, caused by nerve injury or disease, or induced intentionally, especially by the administration of anesthetic drugs, to provide medical treatment. The first public use of ether to anesthetize a patient in Boston in 1846 initiated widespread acceptance of anesthetics in the Western world for surgical procedures and obstetrics. General anesthesia, administered as inhalation or intravenous agents, acts primarily on the brain, resulting in a temporary loss of consciousness. Regional or local anesthesia affects sensation in a specific anatomic area, and includes topical application of local anesthetics, blocking of peripheral nerves, spinal anesthesia, and epidural anesthesia, which is used commonly during childbirth.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
anaesthesia in Culture

anesthesia

[(an-is-thee-zhuh)]

Loss of sensation or consciousness. Anesthesia can be induced by an anesthetic, by acupuncture, or as the result of injury or disease.

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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.