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local anesthetic

local anesthetic

7 3.9
Medicine that makes a small body area lose feeling to stop pain during a medical procedure
  • noun
  • /ˈloʊkəl əˈnɛsθɛtɪk/
  • Specialized
translation icon : anestésico local
  • A veterinarian can take a sample of the tissue with only a local anesthetic.
  • local anesthetic injection
  • use of a local anesthetic

Now there is one drug that can stop pain signals before the brain ever perceives them, local anesthetics.

Examples

  • Before the dental procedure, the dentist applied a local anesthetic to numb the area and prevent pain.

  • As such, patients who underwent procedures in the minor procedure room under local anesthetic alone through same-day surgery were not included.

    Academic text (2015)
  • It's just a local anesthetic.

  • The lump was nothing at all; they removed it under local anesthetic.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • All right, I'm gonna give him a local anesthetic so I can clean up the wound.

  • I've given him a local anesthetic.

  • They gave me a local anesthetic, so I could hear everything that was going on.

  • A local anesthetic numbs the procedure site.

  • Doctor Brownstein cleansed the area, applied a light local anesthetic, and selected the knife.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna give you a local anesthetic... and I'm going to remove a little bone marrow from your hip.

Synonyms

anesthetic
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
43 4.9

A drug that makes part of the body stop feeling pain during medical treatment

is specific to drugs causing numbness in a limited body area
lidocaine
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
18 6.7

A medicine that numbs a small area of skin or mouth

is the general category covering such medicines rather than one example
local anesthesia
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
3 4.4

A loss of feeling in a small part of the body after medicine numbs it

refers to the medicine that produces this temporary loss of feeling
topical anesthetic
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
1 4.6

A medicine put on the skin or mouth to make one area numb

covers medicines that numb a small area by injection or application
local
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
1 6.5

A drug or injection that makes one part of the body numb

is the standard medical term for such numbing medicines
anesthetic agent
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A drug that temporarily makes part of the body feel no pain during medical treatment

focuses on medicines used to numb a particular area rather than generally
anesthyl
vslocal anesthetic
  • Specialized
9.9

A cold spray used to numb a small area of skin before a minor medical procedure

refers to the broader class of medicines that give targeted numbness

Antonyms

general anesthetic
  • Specialized
3 4.1

A drug that puts you to sleep and stops you feeling pain during an operation

How Numbing

general anesthetic
  • Specialized
3 4.1
regional anesthesia
  • Specialized
4.1
local anesthetic
  • Specialized
7 3.9
topical anesthetic
  • Specialized
1 4.6

Surface Forms

Morphology

local + anesthetic

The meaning 'a drug that causes loss of sensation in a specific area' is directly and compositionally derived from 'local' (restricted to a specific area) + 'anesthetic' (an agent that numbs sensation). This straightforward, literal noun–noun combination is common cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand the term.

Etymology

Local anesthetic combines two clear ideas: local ('in one small place') and anesthetic ('without feeling'). Imagine a small numb 'blanket' or a switch that turns off feeling in your tooth or hand so you don't feel pain during a short medical treatment, and that's why the name means a drug that makes one spot stop feeling.