surgical

adjective

SaySUR-ji-kuhl/ˈsɝd͡ʒɪkəl/UK/ˈsɜːd͡ʒɪkəl/

2 meanings of surgical

1
adjective
Involving surgery or connected with its methods, equipment, or effects.
Every surgical instrument must be sterilized before a procedure.
The patient's surgical scar faded over several months.
Similaroperative
2
adjectivefiguratively
Marked by precision and great accuracy.
The editor made surgical cuts to the manuscript, removing only the weakest sentences.
The midfielder threaded a surgical pass straight through the defense.
Similarprecise, exact, accurate, pinpoint, clinical
Oppositeclumsy, imprecise, sloppy

Practice

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Origin

It comes from Middle English cirurgical, borrowed via Middle French cirurgical and Medieval Latin cirurgicālis, ultimately from Ancient Greek kheirourgía (from kheír "hand" plus érgon "work"). It can also be analysed simply as surgery plus -ical.