prosthetic

[ pros-thet-ik ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

of or relating to an artificial body part or prosthesis:
He was fitted for a prosthetic arm.
of or relating to the fields of surgical or dental prosthetics:
advances in prosthetic technology.
of or relating to a substance, item, or process used to transform a person’s appearance temporarily, especially as a theatrical special effect:
The final scene required painstaking application of prosthetic hair and skin.

noun

an artificial body part; a prosthesis:
Hundreds of amputees volunteered to test the new prosthetics.
an appearance-altering substance or item applied temporarily to a person’s face or body, especially to create a theatrical special effect:
Alien creatures are brought to life with realistic prosthetics.

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Other Words From

pros·thet·i·cal·ly adverb

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Word History and Origins

Origin of prosthetic¹

1735–40; < Modern Latin prostheticus, from Hellenistic Greek prosthetikós, equivalent to prósthet(os) “added on,” verbid of prostithе́nai “to add, put onto” ( pros- pros- ( def ). + the-, stem of tithе́nai “to put, place” + -tos verbid suffix) + -ikos -ic ( def )

prosthesis prosthetic dentistry

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