Forceps are a pair of curved or straight surgical instruments used to grasp and extract objects, such as a baby’s head during delivery or foreign bodies. The term also denotes the instruments themselves. The word is of Latin origin and entered English in the medical lexicon, carrying a precise technical meaning rather than everyday use.
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"The obstetrician used forceps to assist delivery when the birth was not progressing naturally."
"The surgeon carefully manipulated the forceps to remove the foreign object without damaging surrounding tissue."
"He placed the forceps gently, ensuring a secure grip before extraction."
"Dental forceps are specialized tools designed to extract teeth with minimal trauma."
Forceps derives from the Latin word forceps, meaning ‘a pair of tongs, pinchers, or forceps,’ from the root words for ‘to press’ (forte) and ‘hand’ (pes). The Latin plural forceps is carried into English as a technical term in anatomy and surgery by the medieval era, reflecting a long-standing tradition of Latin-based nomenclature in medicine. The path from Latin to modern English involved adoption into early medical texts, with the term first appearing in English medical writings during the 16th or 17th century as physicians formalized instruments for obstetrics and anatomy. Over time, “forceps” broadened from a generic tongs concept to a specialized instrument family, with numerous variations (e.g., obstetric, dental, and veterinary forceps). The plural form has long been treated as a massed noun in many contexts (e.g., “the forceps are on the tray”), though singular references appear in surgical instruction. The term’s resilience reflects the instrument’s iconic silhouette and enduring role in clinical practice, remaining a core term in medical vocabulary today.
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Words that rhyme with "forceps"
-hes sounds
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Pronunciation: forceps is pronounced as /ˈfɔːrˌsəps/ in US and UK dictionaries, with the primary stress on the first syllable: FORSE-ps, and a secondary, lighter stress on the second syllable. The initial /f/ is a crisp voiceless labiodental fricative, followed by an open-mid back vowel /ɔː/ (as in ‘thought’ for some speakers). The second syllable begins with /s/, then the unstressed schwa /ə/ and ends with /ps/. In rapid speech, the /ə/ can be reduced. Audio cues: hover or listen to medical pronunciation references to hear the /ɔː/ quality and the final /ps/ cluster. IPA guide: US/UK: /ˈfɔːrˌsɛps/ or /ˈfɔːrˌsəps/ depending on dialect; note the final “ps” unreleased in many speakers.
Common errors include misplacing the primary stress or mispronouncing the final consonant cluster. 1) Stress on the second syllable: say FOR-seps instead of FORCES, which weakens the authoritative clinical cue. 2) Pronouncing the final cluster as /ps/ with a strong voicing or as /s/ only, rather than an unreleased /ps/; keep it as a quick /ps/ cluster without a pronounced stop after the /p/. 3) The vowel in the first syllable can drift toward /ɒ/ or /ɔ/; aim for the broad /ɔː/ as in ‘thought’ in many accents. Listen to standard medical sources for accuracy and practice with slow-didelity recordings.
Across accents, the first syllable retains /fɔː/ in US/UK but may approach /fɔː/ in AU as well. The main differences lie in vowel quality and rhoticity: US rhotic accents often maintain a tighter /ɔːr/ sequence with a pronounced r-coloring, while UK non-rhotic accents may realize the /r/ more subtly or not at all in some contexts, making /ˈfɔːsəps/ sound closer to /ˈfɔːsəps/ with a reduced r-like sheen. Australian English tends toward a broad /ɔː/ and a flatter /ə/ in the second syllable; expect less American r-coloring and a more centralized, reduced vowel in the unstressed second syllable. In all accents, the final /ps/ cluster remains, but voicing and aspiration may vary slightly.
The difficulty comes from two features: the stressed, long first vowel /ɔː/ and the final consonant cluster /ps/. The /ɔː/ requires maintaining a rounded, open back vowel without turning into a shorter /oʊ/ or /ɒ/ in non-native speech. The /ps/ cluster demands a quick release: a voiceless labial-velar plosive /p/ immediately followed by a sibilant /s/, which some learners insert an extra vowel between or voice the /p/ unintentionally. Practice with careful timing, and use a sensorily guided mouth position to avoid epenthesis or vowel intrusion.
Question: Is the final sound in ‘forceps’ pronounced as two separate phonemes /p/ and /s/ or as a single voiceless cluster /ps/? Answer: In careful articulation, it’s a short, unreleased /p/ followed immediately by /s/, effectively /ps/. The tongue lands for /p/ at the alveolar ridge with the lips sealing, then the /s/ is produced as a hiss with a small burst, finishing the word. Pay attention to the timing so you don’t turn it into /p/ or slip into /s/ after a vowel.
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