rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryspleenBlood-filtering organ
noun

spleen

SPLEEN/spliːn/

An organ that filters blood and helps the body fight infection.

The diagram highlights the spleen beside the faint outline of the stomach.

An anatomically accurate spleen emphasized in a simple upper-abdominal anatomical view, with a faint stomach and left lower ribs establishing its characteristic position.
Etymology
spleenGreekspleen, milt

Greek splēn already named this organ, also called the milt. The English anatomical sense preserves that direct reference, while associations with ill temper developed separately.

In context

Plus TV Africa3:46
the spleen serves as a storehouse or a a dumping site so it traps all the bad red cells
Sickle Cell Anaemia: Definition, Causes And Treatment | MANAGING YOUR HEALTH

More examples

  • The spleen filters blood.
  • The surgeon examined the spleen.
  • The textbook compares the spleens of several mammals.

Forms

spleen · spleens