Amblyoscope

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A device used to evaluate how well both eyes work together in seeing an object
2. An apparatus designed to assess the coordination and alignment of the two eyes
3. A tool employed to examine the effectiveness of binocular vision by presenting separate images to each eye

Etymology: Amblyoscope is a modern technical coinage, built from Greek parts rather than inherited from antiquity. Its first element, "ambly-", comes from the Ancient Greek "ămblŭs", meaning blunt or dull, and it appears in medicine in the sense of dimness of vision, the condition now called amblyopia, or "lazy eye." The second element, "-scope", comes from the Greek "skopein", meaning to look at or examine, the same root found in microscope and telescope. The linking vowel "-o-" joins the two parts, a pattern common in scientific Greek-based terms. Put together, the name describes an instrument for examining the eyes, specifically for measuring how well they work together. Clinicians use it to diagnose and treat conditions in which the eyes fail to align properly.