Main Entry: ¹doc·tor

Pronunciation: \ˈdäk-tər\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English doctour teacher, doctor, from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin doctor, from Latin, teacher, from docēre to teach — more at docile

Date: 14th century

1 a : an eminent theologian declared a sound expounder of doctrine by the Roman Catholic Church —called also doctor of the church b : a learned or authoritative teacher c : a person who has earned one of the highest academic degrees (as a PhD) conferred by a university d : a person awarded an honorary doctorate (as an LLD or Litt D) by a college or university
2 a : a person skilled or specializing in healing arts; especially : one (as a physician, dentist, or veterinarian) who holds an advanced degree and is licensed to practice b : medicine man
3 a : material added (as to food) to produce a desired effect b : a blade (as of metal) for spreading a coating or scraping a surface
4 : a person who restores, repairs, or fine-tunes things

— doc·tor·al \-t(ə-)rəl\ adjective

— doc·tor·less \-tər-ləs\ adjective

— doc·tor·ship \-ˌship\ noun