psychiatry

noun

psy·​chi·​a·​try sə-ˈkī-ə-trē How to pronounce psychiatry (audio)
sī-
: a branch of medicine that deals with mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders
psychiatric adjective
psychiatrically adverb

Examples of psychiatry in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web According to Eric Lenze, MD, head of the department of psychiatry at Washington University’s School of Medicine in St. Louis, there’s even a version of the questionnaire providers use to guide diagnoses, called the PHQ-9, online. Kayla Blanton, SELF, 19 Mar. 2024 Melatonin Supplements Melatonin is a hormone produced at night by your brain, explains Catherine McCall, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Washington in Seattle and director of Provider Clinics at the Veterans Administration, Puget Sound. Avery Hurt, Discover Magazine, 11 Mar. 2024 The theory is not accepted as a mental health disorder by psychiatry's diagnostic bodies. Hannah Dreyfus, The Arizona Republic, 27 Feb. 2024 When martial law is imposed overnight, shutting down the country, visiting guest lecturer British psychiatry professor Dr Joan Andrews (Manville) arrives just as taxis have been replaced by tanks and citizens are treated like criminals. Alex Ritman, Variety, 30 Jan. 2024 The programs and Baptist facilities FIU and Baptist will partner on 22 residency programs, including obstetrics, gynecology and psychiatry. Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 25 Jan. 2024 Some physicians in the field had heard the emerging calls for palliative psychiatry with alarm. Katie Engelhart, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2024 The optimism-realism divide is difficult to navigate in psychiatry. Anand Kumar, STAT, 27 Feb. 2024 Fanon also sought to adapt his psychiatry practice to address the cruelties of colonialism. Adam Shatz, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'psychiatry.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

probably from French psychiatrie, from psychiatre psychiatrist, from psych- psych- + Greek iatros physician — more at -iatry

First Known Use

1828, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of psychiatry was in 1828

Dictionary Entries Near psychiatry

Cite this Entry

“Psychiatry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/psychiatry. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

psychiatry

noun
psy·​chi·​a·​try sə-ˈkī-ə-trē How to pronounce psychiatry (audio)
sī-
: a branch of medicine that deals with disorders of the mind, emotions, or behavior
psychiatric adjective

Medical Definition

psychiatry

noun
psy·​chi·​a·​try -trē How to pronounce psychiatry (audio)
plural psychiatries
: a branch of medicine that deals with the science and practice of treating mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders especially as originating in endogenous causes or resulting from faulty interpersonal relationships

More from Merriam-Webster on psychiatry

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