Where does “surgery” come from?
Surgery derives from Middle English surgerie, from Old French surgerie, from Latin chirurgia, from Ancient Greek χειρουργία, a compound of χείρ (hand) and ἔργον (work), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European werǵ-.
surgery (English): A procedure involving major incisions to remove,...
Definitions
- A procedure involving major incisions to remove,...
Ancestry of “surgery”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | surgerie | surgery |
| 2 | Old French | surgerie | — |
| 3 | Latin | chīrurgia | a surgery |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | χειρουργία | working by hand, practice of a handicraft or art;... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | χειρουργέω | to work with my hands; to do violence with my... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | χειρουργός | craftsman; surgeon |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | -ουργός | worker, maker; work; worker, maker, craftsman |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | ἔργον | deed, doing, action; labour, work, task;... |
| 9 | Proto-Hellenic | wérgon | work |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | wérǵom | work |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | werǵ- | to make |