spleen

[ spleen ]
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noun
  1. a highly vascular, glandular, ductless organ, situated in humans at the cardiac end of the stomach, serving chiefly in the formation of mature lymphocytes, in the destruction of worn-out red blood cells, and as a reservoir for blood.

  2. Obsolete. this organ conceived of as the seat of spirit and courage or of such emotions as mirth, ill humor, melancholy, etc.

  1. ill humor, peevish temper, or spite.

  2. Archaic. melancholy.

  3. Obsolete. caprice.

Origin of spleen

1
1250–1300; Middle English <Latin splēn<Greek splḗn; akin to Sanskrit plīhan,Latin liēn spleen

Other words for spleen

Other words from spleen

  • spleenish, adjective
  • un·spleen·ish, adjective
  • un·spleen·ish·ly, adverb

Words Nearby spleen

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use spleen in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for spleen

spleen

/ (spliːn) /


noun
  1. a spongy highly vascular organ situated near the stomach in man. It forms lymphocytes, produces antibodies, aids in destroying worn-out red blood cells, and filters bacteria and foreign particles from the blood: Related adjectives: lienal, splenetic, splenic

  2. the corresponding organ in other animals

  1. spitefulness or ill humour; peevishness: to vent one's spleen

  2. archaic the organ in the human body considered to be the seat of the emotions

  3. archaic another word for melancholy

  4. obsolete whim; mood

Origin of spleen

1
C13: from Old French esplen, from Latin splēn, from Greek; related to Latin lien spleen

Derived forms of spleen

  • spleenish or spleeny, adjective

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

Scientific definitions for spleen

spleen

[ splēn ]


  1. An organ in vertebrate animals that in humans is located on the left side of the abdomen near the stomach. The spleen is mainly composed of lymph nodes and blood vessels. It filters the blood, stores red blood cells (erythrocytes) and destroys old ones, and produces white blood cells (lymphocytes).

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for spleen

spleen

An organ in the lymphatic system, in the upper left part of the abdomen, that filters out harmful substances from the blood. The spleen also produces white blood cells, removes worn-out red blood cells from circulation, and maintains a reserve blood supply for the body.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with spleen

spleen

see vent one's spleen.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.