SUR'GERY, noun Properly, the act of healing by manual operation; or that branch of medical science which treats of manual operations for the healing of diseases or injuries of the body. In a more general sense, the act of healing external diseases by manual operation or by medicines; or that branch of medical science which has for its principal object the cure of external injuries.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI