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postmortem examination

British

noun

Also called: autopsy. necropsy. dissection and examination of a dead body to determine the cause of death

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

A postmortem examination identified that Frost suffered from significant cardiac disease and significant vascular disease.

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

Smith was pronounced dead and taken to the Marin County coroner’s office for a postmortem examination, officials said.

From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2024

Frankfurt police said in a statement that a postmortem examination will be carried out on the teen in the coming days.

From Washington Times • May 31, 2023

Still, Lacy added that limitations in the postmortem examination, including some tests that did not get performed, “preclude a definitive diagnosis.”

From Seattle Times • Sep. 20, 2021

On postmortem examination an opening in the heart was found large enough to admit a blowpipe.

From Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine by Pyle, Walter L. (Walter Lytle)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023