Definition of Lancet

Lancet: A small pointed knife; a surgical instrument with a short, wide, sharp-pointed, two-edged blade; a little knife with a small point. Lancets are used today to prick the skin (a finger, foot, ear lobe, etc.) to obtain a small quantity of capillary blood for testing.

A venerable medical journal published in England is called The Lancet.

The word "lancet" comes from the French "lancette." It is literally a miniature version of the lance once carried by knights jousting on horseback and, somewhat more recently, by mounted cavalry.

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