clinical
/ˈklɪn.ɪ.kəl/ IELTSAcademic
adjective
- 1.
Connected with the study or treatment of patients. It is often used for hospitals, doctors, tests, and medical research.
- She has a clinical job in the hospital.
- The trial is still in the clinical stage.
- Clinical staff checked the patient overnight.
- 2.
Showing no personal feeling, warmth, or sympathy. It can describe a cold, practical style in people, writing, or behavior.
- His reply was calm but clinical.
- The report was clinical and direct.
- She gave a clinical explanation of the problem.
Adinary Nuance
Clinical is close to medical, but it is broader in hospital and research contexts. It can also mean emotionally cold, which medical does not. Writers choose clinical when they want to stress expert care, tests, or a detached style.
In other languages
- Vietnamese
- lâm sàng
- Spanish
- clínico
- Chinese
- 临床
- Japanese
- 臨床の
- Korean
- 임상
Etymology
Clinical comes from Greek klinein, meaning 'to lie down'. It passed into English through French in the 17th century, first in medical use.
Common phrases
clinical trialclinical researchclinical diagnosisclinical practice
Synonyms
Related words
Frequently asked questions
- Is clinical the same as medical?
- Not exactly. Clinical is often used for patient care, tests, and hospital work.
- Can clinical describe a person?
- Yes. It can mean someone seems cold, calm, or not emotional.
- Is clinical formal?
- Yes. It is common in academic, medical, and business writing.
- What is a clinical trial?
- It is a test of a new medicine or treatment with real patients.