clinic
B2Neutral to formal in medical contexts; neutral in educational/sports contexts.
Definition
Meaning
A place or session where specialized medical treatment or advice is given to outpatients.
A class or short course of intensive instruction in a particular subject or skill; a meeting at which athletes or sports teams receive coaching or treatment.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Primarily denotes a physical location for outpatient care. Can also refer to a temporary event (e.g., flu clinic, legal clinic). In extended use, implies focused, practical instruction.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Usage largely identical. 'Clinic' is slightly more common in the US for private healthcare facilities, while UK may also use 'surgery' (GP surgery) for primary care. The extended educational/sports meaning is equally common in both varieties.
Connotations
In both varieties, carries connotations of accessibility, practical help, and often a narrower scope than a hospital.
Frequency
High frequency in both varieties in healthcare and educational contexts.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
attend a clinic (for sth)go to a/the clinichold/run a clinic (on sth)refer sb to a clinicbe treated at a clinicVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “a clinic on [sth] (US, informal: a superb demonstration of a skill, e.g., 'The team put on a clinic on defensive play.')”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to private healthcare providers or specialized consulting services (e.g., a marketing clinic).
Academic
Used for practical teaching sessions in medicine, law, or other skills (e.g., a writing clinic).
Everyday
Refers to a place for medical appointments (e.g., 'I have to pop to the clinic for a check-up.')
Technical
In medicine, denotes a facility for diagnosis and treatment of outpatients, distinct from inpatient wards.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The physio will clinic the players on recovery techniques.
American English
- The coach clinicked the rookies all week on fundamentals.
adverb
British English
- N/A
American English
- N/A
adjective
British English
- N/A (Use 'clinical')
American English
- N/A (Use 'clinical')
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The baby had her injections at the clinic.
- There is a new dental clinic on High Street.
- She was referred to a specialist clinic for further tests.
- The university offers a free legal clinic for students.
- The mobile vaccination clinic will be in the town square next week.
- He attended a weekend football clinic to improve his skills.
- The judge's ruling was a clinic in judicial reasoning.
- Their startup offered a two-day 'financing clinic' for new entrepreneurs.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: 'CLINIC' sounds like 'CLEAN ICK' – a place to get cleaned of ickiness/sickness.
Conceptual Metaphor
A CLINIC IS A SOURCE OF TARGETED SOLUTIONS (extended from medical to any problem-solving instruction).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct calque 'клиника' for all contexts; in Russian, 'клиника' often implies a larger, inpatient hospital, while English 'clinic' is usually smaller and outpatient. For a GP's office, UK English uses 'surgery' more often.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'clinic' to refer to a large hospital with inpatient beds. Confusing 'clinical' (adj. related to clinic/objective observation) with 'clinic' (noun).
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following is the LEAST likely meaning of 'clinic'?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No. A clinic typically provides outpatient care (patients go home after), while a hospital provides inpatient care (patients stay overnight).
Yes, it's commonly used for intensive instructional sessions (e.g., a writing clinic, a basketball clinic).
They often overlap. A 'surgery' is commonly used for a GP's premises and appointment times. A 'clinic' often implies a more specialized service (e.g., a well-woman clinic) or is used in compound names (e.g., The Harley Street Clinic).
Yes. 'Clinical' primarily means 'related to the observation and treatment of patients' (clinical training) or, by extension, 'efficiently detached and objective' (a clinical analysis of the data).
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