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bladder
[ blad-er ]
/ ˈblæd ər /
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noun
Anatomy, Zoology.
- a membranous sac or organ serving as a receptacle for a fluid or air.
- urinary bladder.
Pathology. a vesicle, blister, cyst, etc., filled with fluid or air.
Botany. an air-filled sac or float, as in certain seaweeds.
something resembling a bladder, as the inflatable lining of a football or basketball.
an air-filled sac, usually made to resemble a club, used for beatings in low comedy, vaudeville, or the like.
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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 blow2
OTHER WORDS FROM bladder
blad·der·less, adjectiveblad·der·like, adjectiveWords nearby bladder
black widow, Blackwood, blackwork, blacky, blad, bladder, bladder campion, bladdered, bladder fern, bladder kelp, bladder ketmia
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use bladder in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for bladder
bladder
/ (ˈblædə) /
noun
anatomy a distensible membranous sac, usually containing liquid or gas, esp the urinary bladderRelated adjective: vesical
an inflatable part of something
a blister, cyst, vesicle, etc, usually filled with fluid
a hollow vesicular or saclike part or organ in certain plants, such as the bladderwort or bladderwrack
Derived forms of bladder
bladdery, adjectiveWord Origin for bladder
Old English blǣdre
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
Medical definitions for bladder
bladder
[ blăd′ər ]
n.
Any of various distensible membranous sacs, such as the urinary bladder, that serve as receptacles for fluid or gas.
A blister, pustule, or cyst filled with fluid or air; vesicle.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Scientific definitions for bladder
bladder
[ blăd′ər ]
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.
An air bladder.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for bladder
bladder
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.
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.