orthopedic
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of orthopedic
First recorded in 1830–40; ortho- + Greek paid- (stem of paîs “child”; cf. ped-) + -ic
Explanation
An orthopedic surgeon is one who operates on bones and muscles to fix them. The word orthopedic comes from the Greek orthos meaning "straight, correct" and paideia meaning "rearing of children." The term was originally used for children and the kind of treatment they received for skeletal deformities like bow legs or knock-knees. An orthopedic shoe is one that is supposed to help correct the deformed bones and support the weakened muscles of a foot.
Vocabulary lists containing orthopedic
Flowers for Algernon
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Clean Getaway
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Merci Suárez Changes Gears
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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.
Certain breeds are predisposed to heart or orthopedic issues, for example, that can be expensive to treat.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
I’m wearing a helmet that looks chic rather than orthopedic.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026
"There's just not enough clinical data to say whether these peptides are safe and effective," said Alexander Weber, an orthopedic surgeon and chief of sports medicine at the University of Southern California.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
Partial meniscectomy is one of the most common orthopedic surgeries worldwide.
From Science Daily ● May 6, 2026
Once she’s onstage, I notice that she’s not wearing her Frankenstein orthopedic shoes.
From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy
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.
