as in doctor
a person specially trained in healing human medical disorders
a real old-timer who remembers when you could expect a sawbones to make a house call
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Recent Examples of sawbones
Under the Knife 2 continues the story of Dr. Derek Stiles, the brilliant young sawbones from the original game.
—
Earnest Cavalli, WIRED, 1 July 2008
Earnest Cavalli, WIRED, 1 July 2008
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sawbones
Noun
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After the second hanging, the town doctor cut Hooch’s head off, apparently looking for signs of syphilis (brain involvement is often an indicator), which might seem to explain his erratic behavior.—
Graham Averill,
Outside,
28 Oct. 2025
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Gatwa’s final episode ended with the Doctor regenerating into the form of Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), the companion of the ninth and 10th doctors (Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant), but the BBC hasn’t confirmed whether Piper will, in fact, play the next Doctor.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Pair that coverage with a direct primary care physician model.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
31 Oct. 2025
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Acknowledging confounding factors like parental demographics, socioeconomic status, cognitive development and peer influence, the researchers argue that marijuana drove these teens to seek medical care from a primary care physician, hospital or emergency room more than their counterparts.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sawbones.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sawbones. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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