saline

[ sey-leen, -lahyn ]
See synonyms for: salinesalines on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. of, containing, or resembling common table salt; salty or saltlike: a saline solution.

  2. of or relating to a chemical salt, especially of sodium, potassium, magnesium, etc., as used as a cathartic.

  1. of or relating to a method of abortion involving injection of hypertonic saline solution into the amniotic cavity during the second trimester.

noun
  1. a sterile solution of sodium chloride used to dilute medications or for intravenous therapy.

  2. salty water; a salty solution.

Origin of saline

1
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English: “composed of salt,” from Latin salīnus “salty,” equivalent to sal “salt” + -īnus adjective suffix; see sal, -ine1

Other words from saline

  • sa·lin·i·ty [suh-lin-i-tee], /səˈlɪn ɪ ti/, noun
  • hy·per·sa·line, adjective
  • non·sa·line, adjective
  • sem·i·sa·line, adjective
  • sub·sa·line, adjective
  • un·sa·line, adjective

Words Nearby saline

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

How to use saline in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for saline

saline

/ (ˈseɪlaɪn) /


adjective
  1. of, concerned with, consisting of, or containing common salt: a saline taste

  2. med of or relating to a saline

  1. of, concerned with, consisting of, or containing any chemical salt, esp a metallic salt resembling sodium chloride

noun
  1. med an isotonic solution of sodium chloride in distilled water

Origin of saline

1
C15: from Late Latin salīnus, from Latin sal salt

Derived forms of saline

  • salinity (səˈlɪnɪtɪ), noun

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 saline

saline

[ lēn′ ]


  1. Of or containing salt.

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