adjective
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of, relating to, involving, or used in surgery
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(of an action) performed with extreme precision
a surgical air attack on the missile complex
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of surgical
Explanation
Things that are surgical have something to do with an operation performed by a surgeon, or something done with the level of precision a surgeon exercises. So, you could wear surgical scrubs or conduct a surgical strike. A surgical resident is a doctor who's learning to specialize in performing surgery, and the surgical wing of a hospital is the area where surgery is performed. Because what a surgeon does requires such precision and care, the adjective is also used to describe anything done carefully: "Surgical bombing is supposed to be much more precise, with narrow military targets."
Vocabulary lists containing surgical
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.
Many people no longer have space for their third molars – leading to impaction, crowding and often requiring surgical removal.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026
Currently, the main way to diagnose whether a patient has the disease on the NHS is through a surgical procedure called a laparoscopy, under general anaesthetic.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
I didn’t see anything that looked surgical, like it had been cut.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
Its AiBLE surgical platform combines AI-driven predictive software with specialized hardware components that offer an expanding list of applications.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
His surgical kits stood open and gleaming, his instruments laid out in a sunflower of polished steel.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
