necropsy

English

Etymology

From necro- +‎ -opsy.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈnɛkɹɒpsi/, /nɪˈkɹɒpsi/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈnɛkɹɑpsi/
• Hyphenation: nec‧rop‧sy

Noun

necropsy (plural necropsies)

1. (medicine) The pathological examination of a corpse, particularly to determine cause of death. [from 19th c.]
   • 1997, Roy Porter, The Greatest Benefit to Mankind, Folio Society, published 2016, page 255:

     Anatomy theory led to morbid anatomy in necropsy studies pursued by, among others, Johann Wepfer (1620–95) and Théophile Bonet (1620–89), both Swiss.

   • 2011, Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Emperor of all Maladies, Fourth Estate, page 13:

     During the necropsy, he pored carefully through the body, combing the tissues and organs for signs of an abscess or wound.

Usage notes

• The term necropsy is usually used for animals, with autopsy reserved for human beings.

Synonyms

• autopsy
• post-mortem

Translations

pathological dissection of a corpse

• Bulgarian: дисекция (bg) f (disekcija)
• Catalan: necròpsia (ca) f
• Danish: obduktion (da) c
• Esperanto: nekropsio, obdukcio, aŭtopsio
• Finnish: nekropsia (fi), ruumiinavaus (fi)
• French: nécropsie (fr)
• German: Nekropsie (de) f
• Greek: νεκροψία (el) f (nekropsía)
• Swedish: obduktion (sv) c

Verb

necropsy (third-person singular simple present necropsies, present participle necropsying, simple past and past participle necropsied)

1. The act of performing a necropsy.

Translations

to perform a necropsy

• French: nécropsie (fr)
• Greek: νεκροψία (el) f (nekropsía)