Phlebotomist
/ˌflɛbəˈtɒmɪst/noun
A person trained to draw blood from a patient, usually for tests or donation.
Did you know?Phlebotomy comes from Greek medical language, where bloodletting was once treated as a serious healing practice, so the word preserves the old idea of cutting into the body to restore balance.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
GRK
phlebotomía
“cutting a vein; bloodletting”
Late Latin
LAT
phlebotomia
“bloodletting”
Middle English
EN
flebotomie
“bloodletting”
16th Century
EN
phlebotomy
“the practice of letting blood”
Modern English
EN
phlebotomist
“a person who draws blood for medical purposes”
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