AUTOPSY Synonyms: 6 Similar and Opposite Words

autopsy

noun

ˈȯ-ˌtäp-sē

Definition of autopsy

as in dissection

examination of a dead body especially to find out the cause of death the autopsy revealed an advanced stage of cancer

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of autopsy On April 13, 2021—the day after Lanitis died—the Appenzell Ausserrhoden prosecutor’s office ordered the seizure of relevant records and called for an autopsy, which revealed that Lanitis had died of multiple organ failure. — D. T. Max, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026 The autopsy determined the death to be a homicide caused by blunt-force trauma within the past four days. — Natasha Holt, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026 County lawyers in defending the case noted an autopsy revealed a large quantity of methamphetamine in Garza’s body. — Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026 An autopsy showed Hedgepeth suffered extensive skull fractures and cuts to her face and head, and she was also badly beaten on her arms and legs. — ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for autopsy

Recent Examples of Synonyms for autopsy

Noun

The compelling series achieves a provocative dissection of it all with rare confidence without the overindulgence of distracting CGI tossed in for sheer spectacle.

— Jeff Spry, Space.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Sudden neck movements can contribute to this injury, and there have been case reports of dissections following roller coaster rides.

— Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of dissection

Noun

By the end of that dinner in Poland, the mother Nowaczyk-Basińska talked with came to a very different decision about creating a postmortem avatar of her son.

— Lissa Soep, Vox, 17 Oct. 2026
OpenAI enlisted two of its employees and a contractor to put together a postmortem report detailing how the company's models escaped containment, accessed the open internet and breached open-source developer platform Hugging Face.

— Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of postmortem

Noun

The necropsy did not reveal a single cause of death, and instead pointed to several factors including severe anemia, blood clots in her wing and one kidney, and liver and lung abnormalities.

— Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 15 Oct. 2026
The necropsy found that Jackie had multiple conditions, including a type of infectious avian flu.

— ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of necropsy

Browse Nearby Words

autopsies

autopsy

autoroute

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Autopsy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autopsy. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of autopsy

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on autopsy

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

grotesque

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes