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biopsy

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Etymology and origin of the English word biopsy

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1887 Cleveland Medical Journal
Borrowed from
French biopsie
Ultimate origin
Ancient Greek βίος,ὄψις

Pronunciation

  • US: /ˈbaɪɑpsi/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French biopsie,[2][3][4] a word coined by the French dermatologist Ernest Besnier,[4] who used it in 1879.[5] The French word was formed from Ancient Greek βίος (bíos, “life”) and ὄψις (ópsis, “sight, a viewing”),[4][3][6] on the pattern of necropsy.[6][7] The OED analyses the English word as a compound of bio- and -opsy modelled on the French one,[5] and Merriam-Webster treats it as an international scientific word.[8] Etymonline traces the Greek words to Proto-Indo-European *gʷei- (“to live”) and *okʷ- (“to see”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The removal of a piece of tissue from a living body for examination: 1887, in the Cleveland Medical Journal.[5][8] Barnhart and Etymonline date the word to 1895.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

The word was made to contrast with necropsy, the examination of a dead body: a biopsy examines tissue taken from the living.[6][7] From the start it named both the procedure and the piece of tissue obtained by it.[5][9] The verb, to perform a biopsy on, followed in 1914,[5][8] shortly after the participle biopsied;[5] Barnhart and Etymonline date it only to 1964.[3][4]

Timeline

  • 1879 – French biopsie, used by Ernest Besnier.[5]
  • 1887 – removal of tissue from a living body for examination; a sample so taken.[5][8] Barnhart dates the noun to 1895.[3]
  • 1914 – verb, to perform a biopsy on.[5][8] Barnhart and Etymonline date the verb to 1964.[3][4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The removal of tissue, cells or fluid from a living body for examination, especially to diagnose a disease: The doctor ordered a biopsy of the lump.[8][5][9]
  2. The sample of tissue removed in this way.[9][5]
  3. The examination of such a sample, especially under a microscope.[9][8]

Verb

  1. To perform a biopsy on: Two of the nodules were biopsied.[8][5][7]

Word family

  • biopsic

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  3. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  9. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Biopsy.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/biopsy. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

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