doctor

The definition of a doctor is someone with a doctorate or someone licensed to practice a healing art.

(noun)

To doctor is defined as to alter, repair or change in order to mislead.

(verb)

An example of to doctor is adding salt to a bland meal.
An example of to doctor is a waiter changing the tip amount on a signed credit card bill.

See doctor in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

Archaic a teacher or learned man
a person who holds a doctorate
a physician or surgeon (MD)
a person licensed to practice any of the healing arts, as an osteopath, dentist, veterinarian, etc.
a title used in addressing any person who holds a doctorate
a witch doctor or medicine man
a makeshift device, apparatus, etc., for emergency use
a bright-colored artificial fly used in fishing

Origin: ME doctour, teacher, learned man < OFr or < L doctor, teacher < pp. of docere, to teach: see decent

transitive verb

intransitive verb

Related Forms:

See doctor in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

A person, especially a physician, dentist, or veterinarian, trained in the healing arts and licensed to practice.
a. A person who has earned the highest academic degree awarded by a college or university in a specified discipline.
b. A person awarded an honorary degree by a college or university.
Abbr. Dr. Used as a title and form of address for a person holding the degree of doctor.
Roman Catholic Church An eminent theologian.
A practitioner of folk medicine or folk magic.
A rig or device contrived for remedying an emergency situation or for doing a special task.
Any of several brightly colored artificial flies used in fly fishing.

verb doc·tored, doc·tor·ing, doc·tors
Informal

verb, transitive

Informal To give medical treatment to: “[He] does more than practice medicine. He doctors people. There's a difference” (Charles Kuralt).
To repair, especially in a makeshift manner; rig.
a. To falsify or change in such a way as to make favorable to oneself: doctored the evidence.
b. To add ingredients so as to improve or conceal the taste, appearance, or quality of: doctor the soup with a dash of sherry. See Synonyms at adulterate.
c. To alter or modify for a specific end: doctored my standard speech for the small-town audience.
d. Baseball To deface or apply a substance to (the ball): was ejected because he doctored the ball with a piece of sandpaper.