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atria

 [ey-tree-uhm]   Origin

a·tri·um

   [ey-tree-uhm]
noun, plural a·tri·a  [ey-tree-uh] , a·tri·ums.
1.
Architecture.
a.
Also called cavaedium. the main or central room of an ancient Roman house, open to the sky at the center and usually having a pool for the collection of rain water.
b.
a courtyard, flanked or surrounded by porticoes, in front of an early or medieval Christian church.
c.
a skylit central court in a contemporary building or house.
2.
Anatomy. either of the two upper chambers on each side of the heart that receive blood from the veins and in turn force it into the ventricles.

Origin:
1570–80; < Latin (in anatomical sense < NL)

Related forms
a·tri·al, adjective
in·ter·a·tri·al, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Atria is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

atrium
1570s, from L., "central court or main room of an ancient Roman house," sometimes said (on authority of Varro, "De Lingua Latina") to be an Etruscan word, but perhaps from PIE *ater- "fire," on notion of "place where smoke from the hearth escapes" (through a hole in the roof). Anatomical sense of "either
EXPAND
of the upper cavities of the heart" first recorded 1870. Meaning "skylit central court in a public building" first attested 1967. Related: Atrial (1869).

atria
pl. of atrium (q.v.).
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

atrium a·tri·um (ā'trē-əm)
n. pl. a·tri·ums or a·tri·a (ā'trē-ə)

  1. A chamber or cavity to which several chambers or passageways are connected.

  2. Either the right or the left upper chamber of the heart that receives blood from the veins and forces it into a ventricle.

  3. That part of the tympanic cavity that lies below the eardrum.

  4. A subdivision of the alveolar duct in the lung from which the alveolar sacs open.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
atrium   (ā'trē-əm)  Pronunciation Key 
Plural atria or atriums
A chamber of the heart that receives blood from the veins and forces it by muscular contraction into a ventricle. Mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians have two atria; fish have one.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
atria [(ay-tree-uh)]

sing. atrium (ay-tree-uhm)

The two upper chambers in the heart, which receive blood from the veins and push it into the ventricles. (See circulatory system.)

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

atria

in vertebrates and the higher invertebrates, heart chamber that receives blood into the heart and drives it into a ventricle, or chamber, for pumping blood away from the heart. Fishes have one atrium; amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, two

Learn more about atria with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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