medical examiner

American  

noun

1. a physician or other person trained in medicine who is appointed by a city, county, or the like, to perform autopsies on the bodies of persons supposed to have died from unnatural causes and to investigate the cause and circumstances of such deaths.

2. a physician retained by an insurance company, industrial firm, or the like, to give medical examinations to its clients or employees.

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medical examiner British  

noun

1. a medical expert, usually a physician, employed by a state or local government to determine the cause of sudden death in cases of suspected violence, suicide, etc Compare coroner

2. a physician who carries out medical examinations

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Etymology

Origin of medical examiner

First recorded in 1840–50

Example Sentences

By last year, Cali’s homicides were down to 1,107, according to Colombia’s medical examiner.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026

Eric Valencia’s death was ruled as accidental and his cause of death was listed as hyperthermia, according to the Los Angeles County medical examiner.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026

The flu-like symptoms that she had off-handedly mentioned to her mother in the days before her death had in fact likely progressed so quickly as to prove toxic, the medical examiner told Ms. Crittenden.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 8, 2026

Her husband was declared deceased at the hospital, according to the County of Los Angeles medical examiner.

From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2026

A simple chalk mark drawn by the medical examiner on one’s clothes could have a person barred from entering his newly adopted country.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool