Medical
/ˈmɛdɪkəl/noun
Relating to the science or practice of medicine.
Did you know?The word ultimately comes from Latin *medicus* (“physician”), from the same Indo-European root as *mederi* (“to heal”) and *medius* (“middle”), a cluster that shows how ancient healing was imagined as restoring balance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*med-
“to take appropriate measures, to measure, to think”
Latin
Latin
mederi
“to heal, to cure”
Latin
Latin
medicus
“a physician, a healer”
Late Latin
Latin
medicālis
“of a physician or healing”
Old French
Old French
medical
“relating to medicine or physicians”
Middle English
English
medical
“pertaining to healing or physicians”
Modern English
English
medical
“relating to medicine or the treatment of disease”