noninvasive

American  

[non-in-vey-siv] / ˌnɒn ɪnˈveɪ sɪv /

adjective

Medicine/Medical.

1. not invading adjacent healthy cells, blood vessels, or tissues; localized.

   a noninvasive tumor.

2. not entering or penetrating the body or disturbing body tissue, especially in a diagnostic procedure.

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noninvasive British  

/ ˌnɒnɪnˈveɪsɪv /

adjective

1. (of medical treatment) not involving the making of a relatively large incision in the body or the insertion of instruments, etc, into the patient

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Other Word Forms

• noninvasively adverb

Etymology

Origin of noninvasive

First recorded in 1970–75; non- + invasive

Example Sentences

He and others have developed noninvasive interfaces, but these are clunky and uncomfortable, typically consisting of large skull caps with a mass of electrodes.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 6, 2026

Yes, this was uncomfortable, but comparatively breezy as far as medical procedures go — simple, brief and noninvasive.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026

Cardiologists favor this approach to stress testing to exclude coronary artery disease because it is relatively inexpensive, it is noninvasive and it yields a good deal of information about the structure of the heart.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 10, 2026

To test how well the turtles hear, researchers attached noninvasive sensors to the turtles' heads and recorded the electrical activity traveling along their auditory nerves.

From Science Daily • Feb. 5, 2026

Cervical carcinomas are divided into two types: invasive carcinomas, which have penetrated the surface of the cervix, and noninvasive carcinomas, which haven’t.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot