Trepanation
//tɹɛpəˈneɪʃən// noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The practice of drilling a hole in the skull as a physical, mental, or spiritual treatment. countable, uncountable
"Creed had suffered […] a swelling to the brain that the tribe’s chief physic treated with trepanation."
Example
More examples"Creed had suffered […] a swelling to the brain that the tribe’s chief physic treated with trepanation."
Etymology
From New Latin trepanatio, formed from French trépan (“a drill”), itself from Latin trepanum, ultimately from Ancient Greek τρύπανον (trúpanon, “an auger, a drill”).
Related phrases
More for "trepanation"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.