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: a cross-sectional, three-dimensional image of an internal body part produced by computed tomography chiefly for diagnostic purposes
The CT scan showed dilation of the ventricles, the fluid-filled cavities in the brain.Burak Ozgur
What distinguishes a CT scan from a conventional x-ray is its geometry. … Measurements are collected and assembled by a computer into images that correspond to anatomical slices of the body.Adam Rogers

called also CAT scan

see ct scanner
CT scanning noun

Examples of CT scan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
O’Brien had to go for an X-ray and a CT scan, which revealed a two-centimeter shard of glass in her stomach. Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Nov. 2025 Two days after an ultrasound identified the tumor, the Broncos’ medical staff scheduled a CT scan for Singleton. Luca Evans, Denver Post, 29 Nov. 2025 At the hospital, Dylan’s CT scan wasn’t even finished before the anxious mom saw an ER doctor run by. Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 24 Nov. 2025 His team will even go as far as doing a CT scan to see inside a battery and find out whether it is built correctly. Andrew Moseman, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Nov. 2025 Doctors say anyone age 50 or older, or anyone with risk factors, should talk to their health care provider about getting a CT scan. CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025 They’re typically obtained by technicians using either a CT scan, a computerized tomography scan, which uses X-rays, or an MRI, a magnetic resonance imaging scan that uses magnets to produce a clear image. Sandra Rose Salathe, Flow Space, 21 Nov. 2025 According to the report, a CT scan of Frehley’s head revealed multiple contusions, bone fractures to the back of his skull, hemorrhages, and a subdural hematoma (the type of bleeding that occurs in a person’s brain after a head injury). Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 10 Nov. 2025 Shares of the maker of MRI and CT scan machines are down more than 2% year to date. Jim Cramer, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

computerized tomography

First Known Use

1974, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of CT scan was in 1974

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“CT scan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/CT%20scan. Accessed 1 Dec. 2025.

Kids Definition

CT scan

noun

Medical Definition

CT scan

noun
: a cross-sectional, three-dimensional image of an internal body part produced by computed tomography chiefly for diagnostic purposes
A CT scan detected a lesion on her jawbone …David Wallis, The New York Times
The CT scan showed dilation of the ventricles, the fluid-filled cavities in the brain.Burak Ozgur, Discover
The CT scan shows a large mass within the lumen of the ascending colon.The New England Journal of Medicine
What distinguishes a CT scan from a conventional x-ray is its geometry. … Measurements are collected and assembled by a computer into images that correspond to anatomical slices of the body.Adam Rogers, Harvard Medical Health Letter

called also CAT scan

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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