bile

American  

[bahyl] / baɪl /

noun

1. Physiology. a bitter, alkaline, yellow or greenish liquid, secreted by the liver, that aids in absorption and digestion, especially of fats.

2. ill temper; peevishness.

3. Old Physiology. either of two humors associated with anger and gloominess.

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bile ¹ British  

/ baɪl /

noun

1. a bitter greenish to golden brown alkaline fluid secreted by the liver and stored in the gall bladder. It is discharged during digestion into the duodenum, where it aids the emulsification and absorption of fats

2. irritability or peevishness

3. archaic either of two bodily humours, one of which ( black bile ) was thought to cause melancholy and the other ( yellow bile ) anger

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bile ² British  

/ bəɪl /

verb

1. a Scot word for boil 1

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bile Scientific  

/ bīl /

1. A bitter, alkaline, brownish-yellow or greenish-yellow fluid that is secreted by the liver, concentrated and stored in the gallbladder, and discharged into the duodenum of the small intestine. It helps in the digestion of fats and the neutralization of acids, such as the hydrochloric acid secreted by the stomach. Bile consists of salts, acids, cholesterol, lipids, pigments, and water.

2. ◆ Bile salts help in the emulsification, digestion, and absorption of fats.

3. ◆ Bile pigments are waste products formed by the breakdown of hemoglobin from old red blood cells.

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bile Cultural  

1. A bitter fluid produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder. Bile is discharged into the small intestine when needed to aid in the digestion of fats (see digestive system).

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Discover More

Bile is sometimes used figuratively to denote bitterness in general: “His writing was full of bile.”

Etymology

Origin of bile

First recorded in 1655–65; from French, from Latin bīlis; of disputed origin; compare Breton bestl, Medieval Cornish bystel, Welsh bustl

Explanation

In medicine, bile is a fluid secreted by the liver and used to help breakdown fats. Because it used to be associated with anger, feeling your bile rise is the same as feeling mounting anger. How did bile get linked to anger? Pre-modern doctors believed there were four basic substances to the human body, called humours, one of which was yellow bile that controlled anger. It doesn't, but when you feel angry, you'll still hear that you have to swallow your bile.

Example Sentences

Amgen said in its quarterly earnings release in late April that the drug “demonstrates effectiveness and a favorable benefit-risk profile,” and said that vanishing bile duct syndrome hadn’t affected patients in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

Some cases involved vanishing bile duct syndrome, a liver condition characterized by the progressive destruction of bile ducts in the liver, the agency said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

He added: "Sadly, nothing surprises me anymore when it comes to the bile emanating from the mouth of Reform; one wonders how much lower they might sink."

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

CA19-9 levels can rise in non-cancerous conditions like pancreatitis or bile duct obstruction, and some people do not produce the marker at all due to genetic differences.

From Science Daily • Mar. 23, 2026

I ate some wild mint to get rid of the taste of bile, and I walked for what felt like hours through the silent hills.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

Related Words

• acrimony
• animosity
• animus
• antagonism
• bad blood
• bitterness
• enmity
• grudge
• harshness
• hatred
• hostility
• ill will
• malice
• resentment
• venom