In Britain, a Surgery Is Also Where You See the Doctor
Surgery is operative medical treatment. British English also uses the word for a doctor's premises and for a politician's public session.
Surgery is treatment by operation. British English adds two senses that puzzle visitors: the *surgery* is the building where a general practitioner works, and an *MP's surgery* is a session where constituents come with problems. No scalpels are involved in either.
- Operative treatment. *He needs surgery.*
- A doctor's premises (British). *The village surgery.*
- A session for constituents (British). *An advice surgery.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | surgery | Keyhole surgery. |
| Plural | surgeries | Weekly surgeries. |
| Person | surgeon | The operating surgeon. |
| Adjective | surgical | A surgical mask. |
| Related | theatre | The operating theatre. |
How it is used in a sentence
- She is recovering from surgery.American English says *had surgery*; British often says *had an operation*.
- Ring the surgery for an appointment.British: the GP's premises.
- The MP holds a surgery on Fridays.Constituency work.
Surgical terms
- Elective — planned in advance
- Emergency — carried out immediately
- Keyhole or laparoscopic — through small incisions
- Day case — home the same day
- Operating theatre — the room, so called because students once watched from tiers
From Old French *surgerie*, a contraction of *cirurgerie*, from Latin *chirurgia*, handiwork. The general practice sense is a nineteenth-century British development.
Why is an operating room called a theatre?
Because early operations were performed in tiered rooms where students watched from above, exactly like a theatre.
Surgery or operation?
Both are correct. British speakers often say operation for the procedure and keep surgery for the field or the premises.