as in dissection
examination of a dead body especially to find out the cause of death
the autopsy revealed an advanced stage of cancer
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Recent Examples of autopsy
An autopsy is underway, and results could take at least two weeks to get, police have said.
—
Angela George, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 26 Mar. 2026
At the committee’s meeting in January, Brent Mendenhall, a commissioner from Madison County, was enthusiastic about the draft legislation and the push for more autopsies.
—Audrey Dutton, ProPublica, 24 Mar. 2026
The five bullets found in Ordoñez’s body during an autopsy traced back to the guns of Lee, Santiesteban, Mateo and Mirabal, according to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation report released in August 2024.
—Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 23 Mar. 2026
There are few court cases or autopsies.
—Mogomotsi Magome, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for autopsy
Angela George, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 26 Mar. 2026
At the committee’s meeting in January, Brent Mendenhall, a commissioner from Madison County, was enthusiastic about the draft legislation and the push for more autopsies.
—Audrey Dutton, ProPublica, 24 Mar. 2026
The five bullets found in Ordoñez’s body during an autopsy traced back to the guns of Lee, Santiesteban, Mateo and Mirabal, according to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation report released in August 2024.
—Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 23 Mar. 2026
There are few court cases or autopsies.
—Mogomotsi Magome, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for autopsy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for autopsy
Noun
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The play begins in the mode of a Black sitcom, but this is an elaborate ruse for a theatrical dissection of the subjects of race, representation, spectatorship and control.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Mar. 2026
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What follows this admission is a piercing dissection not of the art itself, but of frameworks of looking at Black art and life that go beyond racist tropes disguised as appeals to the primitive, the spontaneous, the corporeal.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The disease caused by repetitive head trauma is known to cause aggression, mood swings, depression and paranoia but can only be diagnosed through a postmortem brain autopsy.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
15 Mar. 2026
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If the Oilers make an early playoff exit because Jarry (or whoever replaces him) gets lit up, the postmortems will write themselves.—
Sean McIndoe,
New York Times,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
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After the necropsy, the whale was buried on site, AMSEAS said.—
Alexa Herrera,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
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Staff contacted the wardens, who conducted a necropsy and found three weights in the fish’s stomach.—
Harriet Ramos,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Autopsy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autopsy. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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