liposuction

What it means

1. countableuncountablemedicineA cosmetic surgery procedure in which excess fat is removed from a specific area by suction.

   Wasn't my Mom a betty? She died when I was just a baby. A fluke accident during a routine liposuction. I don't remember her, but I like to pretend she still watches over me.

   1995, Amy Heckerling, Clueless, spoken by Cher (Alicia Silverstone)

   3 more examples

   Dr. Peter Normann, the physician who performed liposuctions and other procedures, has been charged in Superior Court with two counts of second-degree murder and one count of manslaughter.

   2008 October 22, Associated Press, “Physician Faces Murder Charges for 3 Liposuction Deaths”, in Fox News

   One of my patients, a beautiful 25-year-old woman, was left with shark bite-sized divots all over her thighs and stomach after undergoing laser liposuction by a family medicine doctor.

   2012 July 25, Dr. Anthony Youn, “Plastic surgery: ‘Wild West’ of medicine”, in CNN

   But a number of surgeons and clinics have reported an increased demand for surgery on those body parts most visible during video calls – neck liposuctions, lower facelifts and under-eye fillers.

   2021 May 30, Oscar Holland, “From ancient Egypt to Beverly Hills: A brief history of plastic surgery”, in CNN

   Synonyms: lipo, lipoaspiration

In a sentence

Wasn't my Mom a betty? She died when I was just a baby. A fluke accident during a routine liposuction. I don't remember her, but I like to pretend she still watches over me.

1995, Amy Heckerling, Clueless, spoken by Cher (Alicia Silverstone)

Where it comes from

1. Proto-Indo-European*leyp-
2. Proto-Hellenic*lípos
3. Ancient Greekλῐ́πος (lĭ́pos)
4. Englishlipo-
5. Englishsuction
6. Englishliposuction

From lipo- + suction.