ophthalmic

adjective

oph·​thal·​mic äf-ˈthal-mik 

äp-

1

: of, relating to, or situated near the eye

2

: supplying or draining the eye or structures in the region of the eye

ophthalmic artery

Examples of ophthalmic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

McDonald’s book depicts how Alcon grew from a small company into the world’s leading ophthalmic specialty company by 1997. —Rick Mauch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Aug. 2025

Developed by the pharmaceutical company LENZ, VIZZ is an aceclidine ophthalmic treatment in the form of once-daily drops that ease near-object blurriness for up to 10 hours. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 7 Aug. 2025

Registered nurses with an ophthalmic specialty can help with administering medications or performing office surgeries. —Angelica Bottaro, Verywell Health, 28 July 2025

Staar Surgical Company, a provider of ophthalmic surgery solutions, announced its appointment of Deborah Andrews as CFO. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 26 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English obtalmic "inflamed, produced by ophthalmia," borrowed from Late Latin ophthalmicus "of the eye" (Medieval Latin also obtalmicus, Latin opthalmicus as noun, "oculist"), borrowed from Greek ophthalmikós, from ophthalmós "eye" + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at ophthalmo-

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ophthalmic

• ophthalmic optician

Rhymes for ophthalmic

• exophthalmic

Medical Definition

ophthalmic

1 of 2 adjective

oph·​thal·​mic -mik 

1

: of, relating to, or situated near the eye

2

: supplying or draining the eye or structures in the region of the eye

ophthalmic

2 of 2 noun

: ophthalmic nerve