Gynaecologist is the spelling to use in British English for a doctor who specialises in women's reproductive health; gynecologist is the American form. The extra a follows the same pattern as British paediatrician and anaesthetist.
The core difference
Both words name the same medical specialist; the difference is the British ae versus the American e.
- gynaecologist — a doctor specialising in women's reproductive health, British spelling: She was referred to a gynaecologist after her scan.
- gynecologist — the same specialist, American spelling: She scheduled a check-up with her gynecologist for next week.
How to tell them apart
Gynaecologist is formed in English from "gynaecology" plus the ending "-ist", while gynecologist follows American English's tendency to drop the "a" from the ae spelling used in Greek-derived medical terms.
The mix-up tends to appear in health content translated or copied from American sources, where "gynecologist" slips through into British-English pages alongside other unconverted American medical spellings such as "pediatrician" or "anesthetist".
