rhizoverbBeta
DictionarylungBreathing organ
noun

lung

LUNG/lʌŋ/

An organ used for breathing air.

Each lung expands as you breathe air into your chest.

A clear anatomical specimen of the paired human lungs with their connected trachea and branching bronchi, emphasizing the recognizable breathing organs rather than a clinical procedure.
Etymology
lungOld Englishlung

The Old English organ-name is linked to lightness, perhaps because lungs from slaughtered animals float in a cooking pot while the heart and liver do not.

In context

Osmosis from Elsevier1:36
a collapsed lung limits how well it can exchange air and can lead to a reduction in an oxygen being brought into the body
Pneumothorax - causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, pathology

More examples

  • The doctor listens to her lungs with a stethoscope.
  • Smoking can damage lung tissue.
  • Dolphins breathe air through lungs, just as people do.

Forms

lung · lungs