anesthetic

American  

[an-uhs-thet-ik] / ˌæn əsˈθɛt ɪk /

Or anaesthetic

noun

1. a substance that produces anesthesia, as halothane, procaine, or ether.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or causing physical insensibility.

   an anesthetic gas.

2. physically insensitive.

   Halothane is used to produce an anesthetic state.

anesthetic British  

/ ˌænɪsˈθɛtɪk /

noun

1. the usual US spelling of anaesthetic

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anesthetic Scientific  

/ ăn′ĭs-thĕt′ĭk /

1. A drug that temporarily depresses neuronal function, producing total or partial loss of sensation with or without the loss of consciousness.

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anesthetic Cultural  

1. A substance that causes loss of sensation or consciousness. With the aid of an anesthetic, people can undergo surgery without pain. (See general anesthetic and local anesthetic.)

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Other Word Forms

• anesthetically adverb
• nonanesthetic adjective
• postanesthetic adjective
• semianesthetic adjective

Etymology

Origin of anesthetic

1840–50, < Greek anaísthēt ( os ) without feeling, senseless + -ic; an- ¹, aesthetic

Compare meaning

How does anesthetic compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• anesthesia vs. anesthetic

Example Sentences

It is FDA-approved only as an anesthetic, and its use for psychiatric conditions is “off-label,” meaning its safety and efficacy hasn’t been vetted by the FDA for that purpose.

From The Wall Street Journal

Dr. Muhsen Abdullah, the surgeon who heads the emergency room, spoke with a weary tone of a ward without surgical thread or stitches, and anesthesiologists forced to ask patients to purchase their own anesthetic.

From Los Angeles Times

Their findings are detailed in the paper 'Growth in production and environmental deposition of trifluoroacetic acid due to long-lived CFC replacements and anesthetics'.

From Science Daily

The journalist James Agee’s merciless portraits of his subjects remind Mr. Frazier of “those old-time operations that were done on a kitchen table without anesthetic.”

From The Wall Street Journal

He celebrated the wave of innovations that had enriched human existence—railroads, steamships, telegraphs, telephones, electric lights, anesthetics, antiseptics.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• opiate