Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. See autopsy.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. Same as necroscopy.
Wiktionary
- n. The pathological dissection of a corpse; particularly to determine cause of death. Applicable to the examination of any life form.
- v. The act of performing a necropsy.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Med.) A post-mortem examination or inspection; an autopsy. See autopsy.
WordNet 3.0
- n. an examination and dissection of a dead body to determine cause of death or the changes produced by disease
Etymologies
- From the Ancient Greek νεκρός (nekros, "dead") and όψις (opsis, "eye"). (Wiktionary)
Examples
“The only difference between a necropsy and an autopsy is that the word necropsy is more usually applied to animals.”
“It took me YEARS to forget the smell of the dolphin necropsy I once observed! (”
“I've spent some time today contemplating why it is that what I always thought of as an autopsy is called a necropsy in all of my current working environments.”
“But the results of an animal autopsy on each dog, called a necropsy, were inconclusive, said American spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan.”
“An autopsy on the whale, known as a necropsy, would have to be done to narrow down the cause of death, Anna Hall said Monday, "but I would think that based on the wounds that I saw, it was killer-whale predation.”
“An animal autopsy, called a necropsy, was performed on the bison in the field with the help of two veterinarians.”
“When an animal is dead, we perform a necropsy, which is an animal autopsy.”
“A necropsy is the term for a post-mortem examination performed on an animal or inanimate object.”
“A necropsy is a less romantic way of dealing with an elephant's death, but it does, at least, contribute to scientific knowledge of the physiology of the species, which is another kind of monument.”
“A necropsy is the right thing to do, but will it be worth the expense?”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘necropsy’.
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11184 more...
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phrontistery - n
from phrontistery.info
nacarat, nacelle, nacket, nacre, nacreous, naevus, naiant, nail, nainsook, naissant, nanism, nanization and 340 more...
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nachchba's Words
stentorian, blasé, ennui, concinnity, melee, photokeratitis, skiffle, refulgence, mongrel, fakir, caid, eudaimonia and 215 more...
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Words I Know
List of most of the words I've learned
garner, abase, abate, abdicate, abduct, aberration, abet, abhor, abide, abject, abjure, abnegation and 1046 more...
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NTDW1
template, modal, sublingual, tandem, polycentric, septuagenarian, token, irrevocable, denotive, augural, aberrant, phlebotomy and 1188 more...
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Learned (or Encountered) in Reading
I have a list for words learned from Newsweek; here's where I keep all the stuff from other shit I read.
Except when I'm looking stuff up and find new words that way. Those go on their...cellie, laminectomy, mridangam, terroir, hypospadias, crus, corpora cavernosa, crura, uretheral meatus, bartholin's gland, coloquintida, colopexy and 921 more...
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NeoVolt's Words
schadenfreude, serendipity, idiosyncrasy, loess, caducous, vagary, schematic, steeple, licentious, tangential, verisimilitude, vernacular and 385 more...
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wackyvorlon's list
herein, execrable, extirpate, ameliorate, sawbuck, obstreperous, truculent, festinate, exiguous, exsanguinate, vehement, vex and 135 more...
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döden
about death in its different forms.
euthanasia, autopsy, post mortem, disinter, rigor mortis, necropolis, requiem, epitaph, exhumation, sepulchre, sarcophagus, terminal burrowing and 60 more...
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Death
postmortem, antemortem, casketing, cadaveric, entombment, inurnment, casket coach, cremains, disinterment, epitaph, bequest, catacombs and 59 more...
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Words looked up.
A general list of words that I’ve learned during my self-study times.
burgher, qua, pace, lieu, ipso facto, indolence, bona fide, pis aller, plaint, gambit, proclivity, triage and 47 more...
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1102
genteel, ultimatum, melanoma, ceviche, schizophrenia, burly, fumigation, dry-beat, stickybeak, abnormous, dayspring, windbound and 25 more...
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quark, quark, quark!
science words that are fun to say
math, too
"I like to say 'quark'! Quark, quark, quark, quark!" - Hobbesscatological, circadian rhythm, imago, quark, gastrointestinal, phylum, protease inhibitor, trilobite, solar plexus, ratite, strata, quasar and 86 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for necropsy.
wackyvorlon It is not exactly a synonym for autopsy. Autopsy comes from the greek, auton, meaning "self". Necropsy is properly applied to animals, autopsy to humans. Confusion in this regard vexes me greatly. Sep 22, 2008
awils1 Stedman's Concise Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions lists it as a synonym for autopsy. Aug 3, 2008
chained_bear "On January 2, a team of scientists ... began a necropsy—measuring and photographing the carcass and collecting blood and tissue samples that would later help them determine what the whale had been suffering from."
--Nathaniel Philbrick, In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, 232 May 1, 2008