Dictionary Home »
Dictionary Definitions » forceps
forceps
(fôr′seps′, -səps)
noun pl. forceps
tongs or pincers for grasping, compressing, and pulling, used esp. by surgeons and dentists
Origin: L, orig., smith's tongs < formus, warm + capere, to take: see have
See forceps in American Heritage Dictionary 4
noun pl. forceps forceps
- An instrument resembling a pair of pincers or tongs, used for grasping, manipulating, or extracting, especially such an instrument used by a surgeon.
- A pincerlike pair of movable appendages at the posterior end of the abdomen in certain insects, such as earwigs.
Origin:
Origin: Latin, fire tongs, pincers; see gwher- in Indo-European roots
.Learn more about forceps
