Anesthetizer

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A chemical compound or device that brings about a temporary loss of feeling or awareness in patients for surgical or medical use
2. An agent or instrument employed to create insensitivity to pain, allowing for surgical operations without discomfort
3. A substance or tool utilized in medical settings to induce a reversible absence of sensation or consciousness for the purpose of performing procedures safely

Etymology: "Anesthetizer" is simply the agent noun formed by adding the suffix "-er" to "anesthetize," a verb meaning to render someone insensible to pain. The suffix "-er" has long been used in English to name a person or thing that performs an action, so an anesthetizer is whatever does the anesthetizing, here a drug that produces numbness. The verb it builds on, "anesthetize," takes its base from "anesthesia," a term coined in Greek as "anaisthesia" meaning "without sensation," formed from the prefix "an-" (not) and "aisthesis" (perception). The word's sense of loss of feeling is the key to its whole family, from the noun for the state itself to the drug that brings it on.

Synonyms: anesthetic, sedative, narcotic, painkiller, tranquilizer

Antonyms: stimulant, activator, energizer, invigorator, catalyst