Lithotomy
/lɪˈθɒt.ə.mi/noun
Surgical cutting for the removal of stones, especially from the bladder.
Did you know?Lithotomy comes from Greek medical vocabulary, where lithos means “stone” and tomē means “cutting”; the same tomē root also lives in words like anatomy and tracheotomy, all carrying the ancient idea of cutting open to reveal what’s hidden.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
GR
λιθοτομία (lithotomía)
“cutting of stones; stone surgery”
Late Greek / Medical Greek
GR
λιθοτόμος (lithotómos)
“stone-cutter; one who cuts stones or removes stones surgically”
Latin
LA
lithotomia
“lithotomy; surgical removal of stones”
14th–16th Century
English
lithotomie / lithotomy
“the surgical operation for cutting out bladder stones”
Modern English
EN
lithotomy
“surgical removal of stones, especially from the bladder”
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