English
surgery
Surgery comes from Old French surgerie, from Latin chīrūrgia, from Greek χειρουργία, from χείρ ‘hand’ + ἔργον ‘work’.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEχειρουργίαkheirourgíā̆
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEchīrūrgia‘a surgery’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400surgerie
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation 1972surgery
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEχειρουργίαkheirourgíā̆
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEchīrūrgia‘a surgery’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400surgerie
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form
- Englishearliest quotation 1972surgery
Earliest quotation: 1972, James Herriot: “Surgery is from six to seven o’clock. If you…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰes- ‘hand’
host, millionaire, kilometre, garter, hasta, 38 more
through Ancient Greek χείρ ‘hand’
chiral, surgically, neurosurgical, 36 more
through Ancient Greek χειρουργός ‘craftsman’
Today it means
noun The act or process of medical intervention involving incisions to remove, repair, or replace a part of a body; an instance of this process (a procedure).
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek χειρουργία / surgery