geriatrics
geriatrics Lexical Profile
geriatrics Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The branch of medicine or social science dealing with the health, clinical care, and treatment of diseases and problems specific to elderly people (functioning as singular).
"After completing her internal medicine residency, she decided to specialize in geriatrics to better serve the region's aging population."
Old people, especially those receiving special medical or institutional care (plural form of 'geriatric').
"The community center installed new ramps and handrails to make the facility safer for the local geriatrics."
Word Nuance & Usage
'Geriatrics' is distinguishable from 'gerontology': geriatrics is specifically the medical care and clinical treatment of older adults, whereas gerontology is the broader interdisciplinary study of the aging process across biological, psychological, and social dimensions. When referring to the medical specialty, 'geriatrics' takes a singular verb.
• Rhymes for geriatrics
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in 1909 by Austrian-born American physician Ignatz Leo Nascher from Ancient Greek 'gēras' (old age) and 'iatrikos' (relating to a physician or healing), modeled on 'pediatrics'.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.