cannula
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cannula
First recorded in 1675–85; from New Latin, Latin: “small reed,” equivalent to cann(a) “reed, cane” + -ula diminutive suffix; see origin at cane, -ule
Compare meaning
How does cannula compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
In medicine, a cannula is a very thin tube that's used to deliver medicine. A patient undergoing surgery will often have a cannula inserted into a vein so that anesthesia can be administered. If you've ever had an IV in a hospital or doctor's office, you've had a cannula, which is nothing more than the flexible tube that fluids or medication flows through. Donating blood or having a blood test involves cannulas as well — in this case, a small amount of blood flows from your vein into the cannula. This is a Latin word that means "small reed or pipe," from canna, "reed or pipe."
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.
During the trial, STC3141 was delivered through an infusion using a cannula.
From Science Daily • Jan. 30, 2026
The sterile procedure would need to be temporarily halted while a nasal cannula with nasal prongs was placed in both nostrils and the delivery of oxygen was begun.
From Slate • Jan. 29, 2025
I received the chemotherapy through a cannula in the back of my hand alongside about half-a-dozen other patients in a ward at the local hospital in Dumfries.
From BBC • Sep. 14, 2024
“I don’t know how long I’ll indefinitely need the oxygen,” she added while gesturing toward her nasal cannula, “but you have no idea how blessed and how grateful I was for this holiday season.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2024
It delivered two liters of oxygen to me each minute through a cannula, a transparent tube that split just beneath my neck, wrapped behind my ears, and then reunited in my nostrils.
From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green
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.
