clinical
Americanadjective
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pertaining to a clinic.
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concerned with or based on actual observation and treatment of disease in patients rather than experimentation or theory.
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extremely objective and realistic; dispassionately analytic; unemotionally critical.
She regarded him with clinical detachment.
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pertaining to or used in a sickroom.
a clinical bandage.
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Ecclesiastical.
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(of a sacrament) administered on a deathbed or sickbed.
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(of a convert or conversion) made on a deathbed or sickbed.
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adjective
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of or relating to a clinic
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of or relating to the bedside of a patient, the course of his disease, or the observation and treatment of patients directly
a clinical lecture
clinical medicine
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scientifically detached; strictly objective
a clinical attitude to life
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plain, simple, and usually unattractive
clinical furniture
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of clinical
Explanation
Something that's clinical is based on or connected to the study of patients. Clinical medications have actually been used by real people, not just studied theoretically. When you hear about clinical drug trials, you'll know there are patients taking them and being observed — this type of test can be called clinical research. Another way to use this adjective is to mean "emotionally cold" or "impersonal." If you have a choice between a detached, clinical French teacher and a warm, charming one, you might be more likely to choose the latter. This second meaning of clinical, from the mid-1920s, originally meant "as unemotional as a medical report."
Vocabulary lists containing clinical
"The Veldt" by Ray Bradbury
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Just Mercy
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National Nurses Week: Common Medical Terms
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
She has held diverse strategic roles at the intersection of go-to-market, clinical and operations in digital health, currently consults for venture-capital and early-stage digital health companies, and writes for the Massively Better Healthcare blog.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026
Following two trial misses and a third clinical setback, analysts fear Novartis may miss its 2030 growth targets without further acquisitions.
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
A BBC analysis of NHS Resolution figures using published data and freedom of information requests showed there were more than 1,623 A&E-related clinical negligence claims in 2025-26 in England – up from 1,151 in 2020-21.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Success would be the strongest clinical validation yet of Insilico’s Pharma.AI platform, Citi analysts said in a recent note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
David became a psychologist, earning a PhD in 1986 from Texas Tech University, and, eventually, becoming an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
