optometrist
Americannoun
noun
Synonym Usage
See eye doctor.
Etymology
Origin of optometrist
First recorded in 1900–05; optometr(y) + -ist
Compare meaning
How does optometrist compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
An optometrist specializes in testing the eyes and helping correct vision with glasses or contact lenses. If you can’t read anything below the giant E on the doctor's wall chart, don’t worry: an optometrist can help improve how you see. Words starting with "opto-" are related to vision, and an optometrist is trained in finding problems with the eyes and recommending treatment or correction. "Optometry" is the science of studying the eyes or vision, and an optometrist is specialized in this study. Two words that are sometimes confused are optometrist and "optician." While an optometrist is someone who examines and treats the eyes, an "optician" works with the optometrist to make the corrective glasses or contact lenses a patient needs.
Vocabulary lists containing optometrist
Common Senses: Op, Ops, Opt ("Sight")
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Occupations
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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.
Optometrist Iqra Chaudhary, who spotted the abnormalities during Ms Hayes' eye examination, stressed the importance of getting regular eye tests.
From BBC • Oct. 7, 2024
“She’s the Goop-founding, Door-Sliding, Shakespeare-In-Loving, consciously-uncoupling Hollywood superstar. He’s a retired Optometrist from Utah. In 2016, they went skiing,” the show description reads.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2023
So how can one celebrate Juneteenth without turning into, say, Craig the Optometrist from "Atlanta"? There are many answers.
From Salon • Jun. 18, 2022
Even the neighborhood eye doctor is musical: Dr. Elliott Caine, the self-described Jazz Optometrist whose work can be heard on recordings by Beck, Beastie Boys, Bobby Matos and others, has a shop on York.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 9, 2015
Optometrist Alan Grant and Navy Captain Edward Beckman, the new lenses cost $175 a pair, or roughly the same as regular contacts.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
