intensive care

American

noun

the use of specialized equipment and personnel for continuous monitoring and care of the critically ill.

intensive care British

noun

extensive and continuous care and treatment provided for an acutely ill patient, usually in a specially designated section ( intensive care unit ) of a hospital

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of intensive care

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

After the crash the pregnant woman had to undergo an emergency Caesarean section, leaving her premature baby in intensive care for a number of weeks, when she suffered two collapsed lungs.

From BBC

Lucky was delivered safely but spent nearly three weeks in intensive care.

From BBC

After 10 days in intensive care, doctors allowed Chester to go home so he could put on weight and gain strength ahead of open-heart surgery.

From BBC

Instead of celebrating, however, he had to bid farewell to his ailing mother, who had long been in intensive care.

From Barron's

The woman was 7 months pregnant with the family’s third child, a girl, who died in a neonatal intensive care unit.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023