surgeon

American  

[sur-juhn] / ˈsɜr dʒən /

noun

• surgeons
  plural

1. a physician who specializes in surgery.

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surgeon British  

/ ˈsɜːdʒən /

noun

1. a medical practioner who specializes in surgery

2. a medical officer in the Royal Navy

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• surgeons
  plural

Etymology

Origin of surgeon

1250–1300; Middle English surgien < Anglo-French, alteration of Old French cirurgien chirurgeon

Explanation

A surgeon is a kind of doctor who treats his patients by using his hands, often by performing surgery. If you're comfortable slicing into a person's body to remove an appendix, then you might make a decent surgeon. The word surgeon comes from the Greek kheirourgos, which is a fancy way of saying "done by the hand." Whereas a doctor-at-large might treat his patients by chatting with them, asking questions, and prescribing medications, a surgeon's work is much more hands-on, you might say. A surgeon specializes in cutting open the body, usually to heal his patients.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

surgeon surgeons

James Gallagher visits a private clinic to find out about about the procedure, meets a man who has had it done, and chats to a surgeon who says he is dealing with the consequences when it goes wrong.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

In addition, half of the six UK heart and lung transplantation centres have lost their top surgeon in the past two years, as the medics seek opportunities abroad.

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

And yet, we’re the first generation to receive a formal advisory on parental stress from the surgeon general.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

It’s the grunting culmination of a love affair that began when Higdon, a retired cancer surgeon, encountered a line of yaks in Nepal not far from Mt.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026

The chief surgeon discovers them on his rounds, and is overjoyed.

From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque

In several markets reviewed by Elevance, surgeons performing spinal procedures are typically reimbursed $7,000 to $12,000, while out-of-network neurologists remotely monitoring them are winning upwards of $40,000 in arbitration.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

It’s hard not to feel some kind of sympathy for Max, who sustained a severe brain injury while he was incarcerated that required surgeons to install a metal plate in his skull.

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026

"Many beauticians often have a little too much freedom. They think they have learned and, without being surgeons, sometimes perform surgical procedures," Kyrgyz plastic surgeon Iskender Kachkinbayev told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026

“I was familiar with the surgeons that had gone to Gaza and had testified,” she said.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026

The critics were jealous, the articles said, and looking for ways to besmirch the respected surgeons involved in Garfield's care.

From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow

Related Words

• expert
• physician
• professor
• scientist
• specialist