What does "antiseptic" mean?
Antiseptic: Counteracting or preventing putrefaction, or a putrescent tendency in the system; antiputrefactive. Antiseptic surgery, that system of surgical practice which insists upon a systematic use of antiseptics in the performance of operations and the dressing of wounds.
Additional senses
- 2.A substance which prevents or retards putrefaction, or destroys, or protects from, putrefactive organisms; as, salt, carbolic acid, alcohol, cinchona.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00