as in doctor
a person specially trained in healing human medical disorders
a real old-timer who remembers when you could expect a sawbones to make a house call
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Recent Examples of sawbones
Under the Knife 2 continues the story of Dr. Derek Stiles, the brilliant young sawbones from the original game.
—
Earnest Cavalli, WIRED, 1 July 2008
Earnest Cavalli, WIRED, 1 July 2008
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sawbones
Noun
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After the second hanging, the town doctor cut Hooch’s head off, apparently looking for signs of syphilis (brain involvement is often an indicator), which might seem to explain his erratic behavior.—
Graham Averill,
Outside,
28 Oct. 2025
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Gatwa’s final episode ended with the Doctor regenerating into the form of Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), the companion of the ninth and 10th doctors (Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant), but the BBC hasn’t confirmed whether Piper will, in fact, play the next Doctor.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Wen is an emergency physician and adjunct clinical associate professor at the George Washington University.—
Katia Hetter,
CNN Money,
24 Oct. 2025
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Emergency physicians treat anyone in need of care, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay.—
Dr. Bryce Pulliam,
Time,
24 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sawbones.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sawbones. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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