trephination

tre·phine  (tr-fn)

n.

A surgical instrument having circular, sawlike edges, used to cut out disks of bone, usually from the skull.

tr.v. tre·phined, tre·phin·ing, tre·phines

To operate on with a trephine.

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[French tréphine, from obsolete English trefine, from Latin trs fns, three ends : trs, three; see trei- in Indo-European roots + fns, pl. of fnis, end.]

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trephi·nation (trf-nshn) n.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

trephination - an operation that removes a circular section of bone from the skull surgical operation, surgical procedure, surgical process, surgery, operation - a medical procedure involving an incision with instruments; performed to repair damage or arrest disease in a living body; "they will schedule the operation as soon as an operating room is available"; "he died while undergoing surgery"