cautery

[ kaw-tuh-ree ]

noun,plural cau·ter·ies.
  1. an escharotic substance, electric current, or hot iron used to destroy tissue.

  2. the process of destroying tissue with a cautery.

Origin of cautery

1
1350–1400; Middle English <Latin cautērium<Greek kautḗrion, equivalent to kautḗr branding iron (see cauterize) + -ion diminutive suffix

Words Nearby cautery

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How to use cautery in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cautery

cautery

/ (ˈkɔːtərɪ) /


nounplural -teries
  1. the coagulation of blood or destruction of body tissue by cauterizing

  2. Also called: cauterant an instrument or chemical agent for cauterizing

Origin of cautery

1
C14: from Old French cautère, from Latin cautērium; see cauterize

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

Scientific definitions for cautery

cautery

[ tə-rē ]


  1. An agent or instrument used to destroy tissue, as in surgery, by burning, searing, cutting, or scarring, including caustic substances, electric currents, and lasers.

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