surgical

adjective

sur·​gi·​cal ˈsər-ji-kəl 

1

a

: of or relating to surgeons or surgery

surgical skills

b

: used in or in connection with surgery

surgical gauze

c

: following or resulting from surgery

surgical fevers

2

: characteristic of or resembling surgery or a surgeon especially in control or incisiveness

surgical precision

surgically

ˈsər-ji-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Examples of surgical in a Sentence

The work was done with surgical precision.

Recent Examples on the Web

To do this, workers make surgical modifications and upgrades to key plant equipment, including turbines, pumps, motors and cooling systems. — Kristi Swartz, AJC.com, 22 Sep. 2026

In the office on the lower level, a showroom for Atwood’s vast collection of fashion books, the team enlisted German designer Frederik Fialin to build a room within the room using surgical-grade stainless-steel shelving. — Matt Goulet, Architectural Digest, 22 Sep. 2026

But scientists can now tune proteins with surgical accuracy by expanding that toolkit with custom, synthetic building blocks. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 21 Sep. 2026

Surgery is often recommended when the elbow cannot maintain its proper alignment or remains unstable after manually guiding the bones back into place – a non-surgical procedure called a closed reduction. — Armando Salguero Outkick, FOXNews.com, 21 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

surgeon + -ical

First Known Use

1707, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing surgical

• pre-surgical
• surgical mask
• surgical spirit
• surgical strike

Rhymes for surgical

• chirurgical
• liturgical
• nonsurgical
• postsurgical
• dramaturgical
• metallurgical
• microsurgical
• neurosurgical

Kids Definition

surgical

adjective

sur·​gi·​cal ˈsər-ji-kəl 

: of, relating to, or associated with surgeons or surgery

surgical skills

surgical equipment

a surgical fever

surgically

-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Medical Definition

surgical

adjective

sur·​gi·​cal ˈsər-ji-kəl 

1

: of, relating to, or concerned with surgeons or surgery

surgical skill

2

: requiring surgical treatment

a surgical appendix

3

: used in or in connection with surgery

surgical gauze

4

: following or resulting from surgery

surgical fevers