Physician Meaning
/fəˈzɪʃən/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA practitioner of physic, i.e. a specialist in internal medicine, especially as opposed to a surgeon; a practitioner who treats with medication rather than with surgery.
nounA medical doctor trained in human medicine.
Sentence Examples
The physician prescribed his patient some medicine.
My physician advised me to refrain from alcohol for the time being.
Dr Dennett is a practicing family physician in Atlanta.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ prescribed antibiotics for the patient's high fever and bacterial infection.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ reviewed the test results and recommended a course of treatment for the condition.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English fisicien, from Old French fisicïen (“physician”) (modern French physicien (“physicist”)), from fisique (“art of healing”), from Latin physica (“natural science”), from Ancient Greek φυσική ἐπιστήμη (phusikḗ epistḗmē, “knowledge of nature”), from φυσικός (phusikós, “pertaining to nature”). Displaced native Middle English læche, leche, archaic English leech (“physician”). Morphologically physic + -ian.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"His forefathers had been, as a rule, professional men—physicians and lawyers; his grandfather died under the walls of Chapultepec Castle while twisting a tourniquet for a cursing dragoon; an uncle remained indefinitely at Malvern Hill;[…]."
— 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter II, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
"In 2009, the Obama Administration released guidelines on enhanced interrogation written in 2003 and 2004 by the CIA Office of Medical Services. ^((OMS).1-3(appendix F)) The OMS guidelines, even in redacted form, and opinions from the US Department of Justice's (DOJ’s) Office of Legal Counsel show that CIA physicians, psychologists, and other health care personnel had important roles in enhanced interrogation."
— 2010 August 4, Leonard S. Rubenstein, JD; Stephen N. Xenakis, MD, “The Ethics of Enhanced Interrogations and Torture: A Reappraisal of the Argument”, in JAMA, volume 304, number 5, American Medical Association, →DOI, pages 569–570:
"The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates promoted wine for various purposes, including reducing fevers and dressing wounds."
— 2022 January 22, Jonathan Reiner, “If you think that glass of wine is good for you, it’s time to reconsider”, in CNN:
"The doctor had to go to London for a physician to take charge of his practice[…]."
— 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ prescribed antibiotics for the patient's high fever and bacterial infection.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ reviewed the test results and recommended a course of treatment for the condition.