attending

1 of 2

adjective

at·​tend·​ing ə-ˈten-diŋ How to pronounce attending (audio)
: serving as a physician or surgeon on the staff of a hospital or similar health-care facility and having primary responsibility over the treatment of a patient and often supervising treatment given by interns, residents, and fellows
an attending physician
attending staff

attending

2 of 2

noun

: an attending physician or surgeon
In the hospital, he had been cared for by a full team of cardiologists, ranging from fellows in specialty training to attendings who had practiced for decades.Atul Gawande

Examples of attending in a Sentence

Adjective a surprise arrest of the operator of an illegal gambling joint and all attending employees dislikes flying and all of its attending inconveniences
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The Met Gala, which happens on the first Monday of May, is not only a huge event for the celebs attending but is also monumental for the fashion designers who are creating their looks. Brittany Natale, Redbook, 1 May 2023 But the promise that life gets better after residency falls short: Some of my attendings, compassionate and brilliant educators, are burned out or work extra jobs to make ends meet in a high cost-of-living city. Minali Nigam, STAT, 21 Apr. 2023 White opposition to her attending was so intense that federal marshals had to escort her in and out of the school every day. Tori Otten, The New Republic, 27 Mar. 2023 At the time, the attending offered a Stage 1 colorectal cancer diagnosis and recommended surgery to remove the tumor. Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling, The New Republic, 28 Feb. 2023 Working in the emergency department that night was another one of my partners who is another one of our NFL VTMLs also familiar with this world, who was the attending of that ship. USA TODAY, 5 Jan. 2023 The winter premiere is expected to follow Meredith's final day as an attending at Grey Sloan Memorial, tying up Ellen's place on Grey's Anatomy once and for all. Adrianna Freedman, Good Housekeeping, 19 Nov. 2022 After 19 seasons of leading the medical drama, Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) has clocked in her final day as an attending in Seattle. Adrianna Freedman, Good Housekeeping, 12 Nov. 2022 Almost all heads of government attending will be transported in buses to the funeral at Westminster Abbey and to a reception at Buckingham Palace Sunday night. Kevin Sullivan, Washington Post, 16 Sep. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'attending.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1904, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1906, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of attending was in 1904

Dictionary Entries Near attending

Cite this Entry

“Attending.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/attending. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Medical Definition

attending

1 of 2 adjective
at·​tend·​ing ə-ˈtend-iŋ How to pronounce attending (audio)
: serving as a physician or surgeon on the staff of a hospital or similar health-care facility and having primary responsibility over the treatment of a patient and often supervising treatment given by interns, residents, and fellows
The attending staff is also expected to teach and mentor the residents during their training.Geogy Thomas, The Los Angeles Times
If such a patient lacks a reasonably available surrogate, an attending physician may issue a do-not-resuscitate order with judicial approval or with the written concurrence of another physician …Lawrence O. Gostin, The Journal of the American Medical Association

attending

2 of 2 noun
: an attending physician or surgeon
Being the attending on a teaching service nowadays requires visiting once or twice daily, being present for procedures, and documenting everything.Abraham Verghese, The New England Journal of Medicine
In the hospital, he had been cared for by a full team of cardiologists, ranging from fellows in specialty training to attendings who had practiced for decades.Atul Gawande, The New Yorker

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