Doctor vs. Physician — What's the Difference?

A person who is licensed to practice medicine and has trained at a school of medicine or a school of osteopathic medicine; a physician.

A professional who practices medicine.

Any of certain other healthcare professionals, such as a dentist, optometrist, chiropractor, podiatrist, or veterinarian.

Someone who diagnoses and treats illnesses.

A practitioner of alternative medicine or folk medicine who does not have traditional medical credentials.

A person skilled in the science of medicine.

A person who has earned the highest academic degree, usually a PhD, awarded by a college or university in a specified discipline.

Often the first point of contact for patients.

A person awarded an honorary degree by a college or university.

A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of disease, injury, and other physical and mental impairments. Physicians may focus their practice on certain disease categories, types of patients, and methods of treatment—known as specialities—or they may assume responsibility for the provision of continuing and comprehensive medical care to individuals, families, and communities—known as general practice.

Abbr. Dr. Used as a title and form of address for a person holding the degree of doctor.

A person trained and licensed to practice medicine; one who has a Doctor of Medicine or a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree.

Roman Catholic Church An eminent theologian.

(Archaic) A person who practices general medicine as distinct from surgery.

A rig or device contrived for remedying an emergency situation or for doing a special task.

A person who heals or exerts a healing influence.

(Informal) To give medical treatment to

A practitioner of physic, i.e. a specialist in internal medicine, especially as opposed to a surgeon; a practitioner who treats with medication rather than with surgery.

To repair, especially in a makeshift manner; rig.

A medical doctor trained in human medicine.

To falsify or change in such a way as to make favorable to oneself

A person skilled in physic, or the art of healing; one duty authorized to prescribe remedies for, and treat, diseases; a doctor of medicine.

To add ingredients so as to improve or conceal the taste, appearance, or quality of

Hence, figuratively, one who ministers to moral diseases; as, a physician of the soul.

To alter or modify for a specific end

A licensed medical practitioner;

(Baseball) To deface or apply a substance to (the ball) in violation of the rules in order to throw a pitch with extraordinary movement

A medical professional providing direct patient care.

To practice medicine.

A physician; a member of the medical profession; one who is trained and licensed to heal the sick or injured. The final examination and qualification may award a doctor degree in which case the post-nominal letters are D.O., DPM, M.D., DMD, DDS, in the US or MBBS in the UK.

A person who has attained a doctorate, such as a Ph.D. or Th.D. or one of many other terminal degrees conferred by a college or university.

A veterinarian; a medical practitioner who treats non-human animals.

A nickname for a person who has special knowledge or talents to manipulate or arrange transactions.

(obsolete) A teacher; one skilled in a profession or a branch of knowledge; a learned man.

(dated) Any mechanical contrivance intended to remedy a difficulty or serve some purpose in an exigency.

A fish, the friar skate.

A ship's cook.

(transitive) To act as a medical doctor to.

To act as a medical doctor.

(transitive) To make (someone) into an (academic) doctor; to confer a doctorate upon.

(transitive) To physically alter (medically or surgically) a living being in order to change growth or behavior.

(transitive) To genetically alter an extant species.

(transitive) To alter or make obscure, as with the intention to deceive, especially a document.

(transitive) To adulterate, drug, or poison (drink).

To take medicine.

A teacher; one skilled in a profession, or branch of knowledge; a learned man.

An academical title, originally meaning a man so well versed in his department as to be qualified to teach it. Hence: One who has taken the highest degree conferred by a university or college, or has received a diploma of the highest degree; as, a doctor of divinity, of law, of medicine, of music, or of philosophy. Such diplomas may confer an honorary title only.

One duly licensed to practice medicine; a member of the medical profession; a physician.

Any mechanical contrivance intended to remedy a difficulty or serve some purpose in an exigency; as, the doctor of a calico-printing machine, which is a knife to remove superfluous coloring matter; the doctor, or auxiliary engine, called also donkey engine.

The friar skate.

To treat as a physician does; to apply remedies to; to repair; as, to doctor a sick man or a broken cart.

To confer a doctorate upon; to make a doctor.

To tamper with and arrange for one's own purposes; to falsify; to adulterate; as, to doctor election returns; to doctor whisky.

To practice physic.

A licensed medical practitioner;

(Roman Catholic Church) a title conferred on 33 saints who distinguished themselves through the othodoxy of their theological teaching;

Children take the roles of doctor or patient or nurse and pretend they are at the doctor's office;

A person who holds Ph.D. degree from an academic institution;

Alter and make impure, as with the intention to deceive;

Give medical treatment to

Restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken;

A qualified practitioner of medicine.

Someone who has earned a doctoral degree.

A person who offers medical services.

A person with extensive knowledge in a specific area.

A title given to university professors.

To diagnose and treat medical conditions.

If they are a surgeon, yes.

Yes, but not every doctor is a physician.

Yes, a doctor can have a PhD in various fields.

A medical degree followed by residency training.

No, they can work in clinics, private practices, or other settings.

Doctors may have a PhD, while physicians have a medical degree.

A dentist is a doctor but not a physician.

Many are, especially in academic or hospital settings.

Yes, such as cardiology or neurology.

If they are a licensed medical doctor, yes.

No, a physician specifically refers to someone with a medical degree.

Yes, especially those with PhDs.

A physician who provides general medical care.

Yes, they hold a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree.