anaesthesia

American  

[an-uhs-thee-zhuh] / ˌæn əsˈθi ʒə /

noun

Medicine/Medical, Pathology.

1. anesthesia.

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anaesthesia British  

/ ˌænɪsˈθiːzɪə /

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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Other Word Forms

• anaesthetic adjective
• anaesthetist noun
• semianaesthetic adjective

Etymology

Origin of anaesthesia

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

Example Sentences

Gilby, who had previously been a medic, a consultant in anaesthesia and intensive care, hoped she had several years to go working for the health service before she was forced out.

From BBC • Jan. 15, 2026

Even under anaesthesia, it reacts: heart rate rises, hormones surge, blood pressure spikes.

From BBC • Nov. 24, 2025

They are also highly sensitive to anaesthesia and so cannot be kept sedated for long, a result of their unique build -- "the heart to the brain is quite long," Mijele explained.

From Barron's • Nov. 17, 2025

Susan Gilby, a consultant in anaesthesia and intensive care, was appointed chief executive of the trust in September 2018, two months after Lucy Letby had been arrested.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2025

Come back around 5 o’clock, he had said, when Finny should be coming out of the anaesthesia.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles