What does lobotomy mean?
A lobotomy is a psychosurgical operation in which connections in the brain's frontal lobes are severed or destroyed. It was performed in the mid-20th century as a treatment for severe psychiatric disorders, before evidence, ethical concerns, and the availability of other treatments led to its decline. The word is also used figuratively for the deliberate destruction or crippling of a person's ability to think, remember, or respond independently, as in political or institutional criticism. Today it carries a strongly negative historical and figurative connotation. Its history makes it more than a synonym for brain surgery: it illustrates how a medical procedure can be adopted with hopeful claims and later become a cautionary example of ineffective or harmful treatment. In careful writing, the word usually refers either to the historical operation or to a clear metaphor for mental suppression, rather than to ordinary neurological surgery.
nounA psychosurgical operation involving the severing or destruction of nerve connections in the brain's frontal lobes, formerly performed to treat severe psychiatric disorders. Figuratively, it refers to the deliberate destruction or severe impairment of a person's ability to think or act independently.
- The surgical severing or destruction of nerve connections within the brain's frontal lobes, historically performed to treat severe psychiatric disorders.
- The figurative destruction or severe impairment of a person's ability to think, remember, or act independently, especially through arbitrary or oppressive treatment.
"Decades later, the former treatment was remembered as a brutal lobotomy rather than a medical triumph."
"The patient underwent a lobotomy during the era when such operations were still being performed."
"Critics accused the policy of performing a lobotomy on the organization by destroying its capacity for independent thought."
The regular plural is used when referring to multiple operations or instances.
"The records describe two lobotomies performed at the hospital during the 1950s."
A procedure once praised as a breakthrough became one of psychiatry's most notorious failures.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does lobotomy come from?
The English word comes through Portuguese lobotomia, a term coined in the 1930s by Portuguese neurologist Egas Moniz for the new operation also called leucotomy. Its components ultimately derive from Greek lobos, meaning “lobe,” and tome, meaning “cutting,” related to the root of surgery. Related English words from the same Greek source include lobe, lobule, and lobectomy.
Related word forms
How lobotomy is actually used
The literal medical term is now chiefly historical. Figurative uses are strongly derogatory and imply the suppression or destruction of independent thought and judgment.
Easily confused with lobotomy
A lobectomy surgically removes a lobe or part of a lobe, whereas a lobotomy severs or destroys nerve connections within the frontal lobes without necessarily removing tissue.