intravenous
Americanadjective
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within a vein.
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of, pertaining to, employed in, or administered by injection into a vein.
an intravenous solution.
noun
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an intravenous injection.
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intravenous feeding. IV
adjective
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Existing or occurring within a vein.
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Administered into a vein, as an injection.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of intravenous
Explanation
If you're severely dehydrated, your nurse will rig up an intravenous drip to get liquid into you: she'll skip your mouth and plug directly into your veins. Intravenous can be broken down to intra-, meaning "within" or "via," and venous, meaning "of the veins." Often in hospitals you will be given water or nutrients from intravenous drips — you've surely seen these on TV if not at the hospital: plastic bags of liquid connected to a tube going into someone's arm. It's a way to get needed stuff into your body without waiting for the digestive system to handle it.
Vocabulary lists containing intravenous
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Intravenous drugs used to treat her then showed concentrations of potassium 100 times the expected dose and the alarm was sounded with local prosecutors.
From BBC • Sep. 8, 2025
Intravenous use is a ubiquitous method for drug and fluid delivery that most anyone might recognize, either by direct experience when sick or by observation in others when others are sick.
From Slate • Nov. 30, 2022
Intravenous infusion is also lengthy procedure ill-suited to the target population: small children.
From Science Magazine • Oct. 31, 2022
Intravenous lines and electrode patches linked his body to a constellation of machines and bags of fluid.
From New York Times • Aug. 17, 2021
Intravenous injections of a watery suspension, and endobronchial injections of a suspension of radium sulphate in oil, have had definite beneficial action.
From Bronchoscopy and Esophagoscopy A Manual of Peroral Endoscopy and Laryngeal Surgery by Jackson, Chevalier
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
