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trepan

1
[ trih-pan ]
/ trɪˈpæn /
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noun
a tool for cutting shallow holes by removing a core.
Surgery. an obsolete form of the trephine resembling a carpenter's bit and brace.
verb (used with object), tre·panned, tre·pan·ning.
Machinery. to cut circular disks from (plate stock) using a rotating cutter.
Surgery. to operate upon with a trepan; trephine.
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Origin of trepan

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun trepane, from Middle French trepan “surgical crown saw,” from Medieval Latin trepanum, from Greek trȳ́panon “borer,”verb derivative of the noun

OTHER WORDS FROM trepan

trep·a·na·tion [trep-uh-ney-shuhn], /ˌtrɛp əˈneɪ ʃən/, nountre·pan·ner, noun

Words nearby trepan

trental, trente et quarante, Trentino-Alto Adige, Trento, Trenton, trepan, trepang, trephine, trepid, trepidant, trepidation

Other definitions for trepan (2 of 2)

trepan2
[ trih-pan ]
/ trɪˈpæn /
Archaic.
noun
a person who ensnares or entraps others.
a stratagem; a trap.
verb (used with object), tre·panned, tre·pan·ning.
to ensnare or entrap.
to entice.
to cheat or swindle.
Also tra·pan [truh-pan] /trəˈpæn/ .

Origin of trepan

2
First recorded in 1635–45; earlier trapan; of obscure origin; perhaps a derivative of trap1

OTHER WORDS FROM trepan

trep·a·na·tion, trap·a·na·tion [trep-uh-ney-shuhn], /ˌtrɛp əˈneɪ ʃən/, nountre·pan·ner, tra·pan·ner, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to trepan

auger, awl, bit, borer, corkscrew, countersink, dibble, gimlet, implement, jackhammer, punch, riveter, trephine, wimble

How to use trepan in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for trepan (1 of 2)

trepan1
/ (trɪˈpæn) /
noun
surgery an instrument resembling a carpenter's brace and bit formerly used to remove circular sections of bone (esp from the skull)Compare trephine
a tool for cutting out circular blanks or for making grooves around a fixed centre
  1. the operation of cutting a hole with such a tool
  2. the hole so produced
verb -pans, -panning or -panned (tr)
to cut (a hole or groove) with a trepan
surgery another word for trephine

Derived forms of trepan

trepanation (ˌtrɛpəˈneɪʃən), nountrepanner, noun

Word Origin for trepan

C14: from Medieval Latin trepanum rotary saw, from Greek trupanon auger, from trupan to bore, from trupa a hole

British Dictionary definitions for trepan (2 of 2)

trepan2

trapan (trəˈpæn)

/ (trɪˈpæn) archaic /
verb -pans, -panning or -panned (tr)
to entice, ensnare, or entrap
to swindle or cheat
noun
a person or thing that traps

Word Origin for trepan

C17: of uncertain origin
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
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