cardiovascular
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of cardiovascular
Explanation
Use the adjective cardiovascular when you're talking about the circulatory system in general or the heart specifically. Cardiovascular exercise gets your blood pumping and is good for your heart. Cardio- means "heart," from the Greek kardia, and vascular refers to blood circulation, from a Latin root meaning "vessels or tubes." So anything cardiovascular is related to the heart muscle and the blood it pumps through arteries, veins, and capillaries. Cardiovascular diseases affect the structure of the heart itself or the vessels that help it move blood through the body. Things like not smoking and regularly moving your body can help you keep your cardiovascular system healthy.
Vocabulary lists containing cardiovascular
Body Language: Cor, Cord, Cardio ("Heart")
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Physical Education - Middle School and High School
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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.
Hackman died a week later of cardiovascular disease.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 4, 2026
Research suggests heat can also help the cardiovascular system, ease stiff joints and even help with our sleep.
From BBC • May 2, 2026
The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists median pay in 2024 for cardiovascular technicians, a broader category that includes heart-test and imaging technicians, much lower at about $67,000.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 28, 2026
During more than three decades of follow-up, 38,847 participants died, including 9901 from cardiovascular disease, 10,719 from cancer, and 3,159 from respiratory disease.
From Science Daily • Apr. 27, 2026
“All this trotting to and fro will be the”—huff!—‘death of me!” she wheezed, although, as you already know, regular aerobic exercise was far more likely to improve her cardiovascular fitness than cause her demise.
From "The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling" by Maryrose Wood
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.
