What does incision mean?
An incision is a cut or opening, most often one deliberately made in the body during surgery or another medical procedure. In medicine, the term refers both to the act of cutting and to the resulting opening, with modifiers such as surgical, small, or deep specifying its nature and purpose. In figurative contexts, an incision can be a sharp distinction between people, ideas, factions, or sections of something. The word is formal and carries a clinical, precise quality, while its figurative use often suggests that a division is deliberate and revealing. Its Latin roots mean literally a cutting into, which reflects both its medical meaning and its widespread use for a clean but consequential separation.
A cut or opening made in the body, especially by a surgeon or other instrument; by extension, a sharp distinction or separation.
"The procedure requires a precise incision through the abdominal wall."
Most common in medical and surgical contexts; figurative uses are formal and emphasize a clear division.
To make an incision in something, especially a body or tissue.
"The blade incised the surface with a single controlled stroke."
Rare and literary or technical; incise is more usual in current usage.
The plural is used when referring to multiple cuts, openings, or figurative distinctions.
"Several small incisions were closed with sutures."
Incision comes from a Roman root for cutting: the word literally names a cut made by cutting into.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of incision
The word entered English in the late Middle English period through Old French from Latin incisio, meaning a cutting or incision. Latin incisio was derived from incidere, formed from the prefix in-, meaning into or into, and caedere, meaning to cut. The same root underlies incise, incisor, and incisive, while the word's development into English preserved its association with deliberate cutting.
How incision is actually used
The word is formal and especially common in medical and surgical contexts. Figurative uses emphasize a precise, forceful distinction or separation. The verb is rare and literary or technical.
Easily confused with incision
An incision is a cut or opening, whereas an incisor is one of the sharp front teeth used for biting.