tonsillectomy

[ton-suh-lek-tuh-mee]

noun

Surgery.

plural

tonsillectomies 

1. the operation of excising or removing one or both tonsils.

tonsillectomy

/ ˌtɒnsɪˈlɛktəmɪ /

noun

1. surgical removal of the palatine tonsils

tonsillectomy

1. Surgical removal of the tonsils.

Word History and Origins

Origin of tonsillectomy¹

1900–05; < Latin tōnsill ( ae ) tonsils + -ectomy

Example Sentences

It got so bad, she says, that she pondered whether to stay a hotel for a few weeks just to recover from a tonsillectomy.

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One patient, Mariah Jacqueline Scott, 32, who lives in Highland Park, N.J., has had two hip replacements, two shoulder replacements, a splenectomy, a gall bladder removal and a tonsillectomy because of the disease.

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Unfortunately, tonsillectomies are largely regarded as elective by insurance companies.

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“This is not the healthy patient coming in for a tonsillectomy and ended up with a bad infection,” Ross said.

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Procedures that were once the bread-and-butter of pediatric wings of hospitals, such as tonsillectomies, are now routinely performed on an outpatient basis.

Read more on Washington Post