general practitioner

noun

: a physician or veterinarian whose practice is not limited to a specialty

broadly : generalist

Examples of general practitioner in a Sentence

Our family doctor is a general practitioner.

Recent Examples on the Web

O’Hara visited his general practitioner and was immediately admitted to the hospital. —Scott McDonald, Fox News, 9 Oct. 2024

Start by working with a primary care provider or general practitioner. —Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 21 Oct. 2024

Separately, right before the pandemic hit in February 2020, my general practitioner began noticing my prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels were increasing. —Rachel Chang, Travel + Leisure, 4 Sep. 2024

An 8-year-old girl died of sepsis after being sent home from her general practitioner twice. —Vanessa Etienne, Peoplemag, 16 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1810, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

general practitioner

noun

: a physician or veterinarian whose practice is not limited to a specialty

Medical Definition

general practitioner

noun

: a physician or veterinarian whose practice is not limited to a specialty

Dr. Thomas, Sr., could carry virtually the full armamentarium of the medicine of his day in a single black bag, and very nearly all of medical knowledge in his head. Today the general practitioner is a vanishing breed, and specialists cannot use their time effectively traveling from patient to patient.

—John Steele Gordon, American Heritage

The primary-care doctor is gaining new respect in Washington. Battles may be breaking out left and right over the various health-care bills emerging from Congress, but reformers on both sides agree that general practitioners should be given a central role in uniting the fragmented U.S. medical system.

—Catherine Arnst, Business Week