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physician

American  
[fi-zish-uhn] / fɪˈzɪʃ ən /

noun

  1. a person who is legally qualified to practice medicine; doctor of medicine.

  2. a person engaged in general medical practice, as distinguished from one specializing in surgery.

  3. a person who is skilled in the art of healing.

physician British  
/ fɪˈzɪʃən /

noun

  1. a person legally qualified to practise medicine, esp one specializing in areas of treatment other than surgery; doctor of medicine

  2. archaic any person who treats diseases; healer

"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

Other Word Forms

  • physicianly adjective

Etymology

Origin of physician

1175–1225; physic + -ian ( -ician ); replacing Middle English fisicien < Old French

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.