lancet
Americannoun
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a small surgical instrument, usually sharp-pointed and two-edged, for making small incisions, opening abscesses, etc.
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Architecture.
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a lancet arch.
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noun
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Also called: lance. a pointed surgical knife with two sharp edges
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short for lancet arch lancet window
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of lancet
1375–1425; late Middle English lancette < Middle French. See lance 1, -et
Explanation
The noun lancet describes a small, double-edged surgical knife used to make incisions. A lancer is a soldier bearing a long spear, called a lance, while a lancet is like a tiny spear — sharp on two sides and meant to pierce things. And though a soldier could wield a lancet, it's more likely to be used by a surgeon. A lancet arch is an architectural term used to describe an arch that peaks at the top. Most buildings with lancet arches are not places where you’d use a lancet, though.
Vocabulary lists containing lancet
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Fever 1793
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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.
See Examples For:
After three unsuccessful jabs with a tiny lancet, I had yet to produce enough blood to fill a circle on a collection card.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
A disposable lancet must pierce the skin, before drops of blood can be sucked into a pipette, mixed with a chemical and placed in the test cassette.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2025
That's the reality for ants infected with the lancet liver fluke, a tiny parasitic flatworm.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2023
Volunteers used a lancet to prick their fingertip and squeeze out droplets of blood that they deposited into sampling devices.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2021
Dr. Kerr took a small lancet from his bag.
From "Fever 1793" by Laurie Halse Anderson
The installation will cover four window sections, or lancets, that are six feet tall and one-and-a-half-feet wide.
From New York Times ● Sep. 23, 2021
In 1805, their lobbying led the Vaccine Pock Institute in London to quiz Jesty about his experiment and he was presented with a scroll and gold lancets.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2021
But her diabetes test strips and lancets cost $120 for a three-month supply.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2018
The lancets used to prick fingers pose another problem.
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 7, 2018
Note difference between mellow strength of this glass and thinness of modern glazing in upper tier of lancets.
From Stained Glass Tours in England by Sherrill, Charles Hitchcock
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.
