doctor
 doc·tor (dŏkʹtər)n.
1. A person, especially a physician, dentist, or veterinarian, trained in the healing arts and licensed to practice.
2.
a. A person who has earned the highest academic degree awarded by a college or university in a specified discipline.
b. A person awarded an honorary degree by a college or university.
3. Abbr. Dr. Used as a title and form of address for a person holding the degree of doctor.
4. Roman Catholic Church. An eminent theologian.
5. A practitioner of folk medicine or folk magic.
6. A rig or device contrived for remedying an emergency situation or for doing a special task.
7. Any of several brightly colored artificial flies used in fly fishing.v. Informal doc·tored, doc·tor·ing, doc·torsv. tr.
1. Informal. To give medical treatment to: “ [He] does more than practice medicine. He doctors people. There's a difference” (Charles Kuralt).
2. To repair, especially in a makeshift manner; rig.
3.
a. To falsify or change in such a way as to make favorable to oneself:
doctored the evidence.
b. To add ingredients so as to improve or conceal the taste, appearance, or quality of:
doctor the soup with a dash of sherry.
See Synonyms at adulterate.
c. To alter or modify for a specific end:
doctored my standard speech for the small-town audience.
d. Baseball. To deface or apply a substance to (the ball):
was ejected because he doctored the ball with a piece of sandpaper.v. intr. Informal
To practice medicine. [Middle English, an expert, authority, from Old French docteur, from Latin doctor, teacher, from docēre, to teach. See dek- in Indo-European Roots.] docʹtor·al adj.docʹtor·ly adj.
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