bladder

American  

[blad-er] / ˈblæd ər /

noun

bladders plural

1. Anatomy, Zoology.

   1. a membranous sac or organ serving as a receptacle for a fluid or air.

   2. urinary bladder.

2. Pathology. a vesicle, blister, cyst, etc., filled with fluid or air.

3. Botany. an air-filled sac or float, as in certain seaweeds.

4. something resembling a bladder, as the inflatable lining of a football or basketball.

5. an air-filled sac, usually made to resemble a club, used for beatings in low comedy, vaudeville, or the like.

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bladder British  

/ ˈblædə /

noun

1. anatomy a distensible membranous sac, usually containing liquid or gas, esp the urinary bladder

2. an inflatable part of something

3. a blister, cyst, vesicle, etc, usually filled with fluid

4. a hollow vesicular or saclike part or organ in certain plants, such as the bladderwort or bladderwrack

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bladder Scientific  

/ blăd′ər /

1. A sac-shaped muscular organ that stores the urine secreted by the kidneys, found in all vertebrates except birds and the monotremes. In mammals, urine is carried from the kidneys to the bladder by the ureters and is later discharged from the body through the urethra.

2. An air bladder.

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bladder Cultural  

1. A stretchable saclike structure in the body that holds fluids. The term is used most often to refer to the urinary bladder, which is part of the excretory system. Another kind of bladder is the gallbladder.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• bladderless
  adjective
• bladderlike
  adjective
• bladdery
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bladders
  plural

Etymology

Origin of bladder

before 900; Middle English; Old English blǣddre, blǣdre bladder, blister, pimple; cognate with Old Norse blāthra, dialectal Dutch bladder, German Blatter; akin to blow ²

Example Sentences

These therapies have produced major benefits in several cancers, including liver, lung, kidney, and bladder cancers, as well as melanoma.

From Science Daily • Jun. 25, 2026

Felicity Benyon, whose bladder was wrongly removed during an emergency hysterectomy, said one issue stood out for her.

From BBC • Jun. 25, 2026

This large fish is targeted because its swim bladder commands high prices on international black markets.

From Science Daily • Jun. 17, 2026

A normal bladder can hold between 300ml to 600ml of urine.

From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026

Third, Roberval devised an experiment where a carp’s bladder which had been flattened and sealed tight was placed at the top of the Torricellian tube.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton