Paramedic

How to spell paramedic

9 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce paramedic

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does paramedic mean?

1. nounA trained professional who provides emergency medical care, typically before or during transport to hospital.

Paramedic in a sentence

• The paramedic checked his pulse and fitted an oxygen mask.

• A paramedic rode in the back of the ambulance with the patient.

Where does paramedic come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This is a modern compound built from two older pieces. The prefix para- comes from Greek, where it meant 'beside' or 'alongside', and by extension 'auxiliary' or 'assisting'; the same prefix gives us 'paralegal' and 'paramilitary'. The second half, medic, traces back to the Latin medicus, meaning 'physician' or 'healer', which itself grew from the verb mederi, 'to heal' or 'to treat'. Put together, a paramedic is literally someone who works alongside doctors, providing medical care in the field. The word is a twentieth-century coinage that spread widely with the rise of emergency ambulance services, and it became common in everyday English from the 1960s and 1970s onward. The spelling is straightforward once you see the join: para plus medic, with no doubled letters and no silent traps.

How the word is built

• para- (beside, alongside, supporting)
• medic (from Latin medicus: physician, doctor)