catheter

American  

[kath-i-ter] / ˈkæθ ɪ tər /

noun

Medicine/Medical.

• catheters
  plural

1. a flexible or rigid hollow tube employed to drain fluids from body cavities or to distend body passages, especially one for passing into the bladder through the urethra to draw off urine or into the heart through a leg vein or arm vein for diagnostic examination.

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catheter British  

/ ˈkæθɪtə /

noun

1. med a long slender flexible tube for inserting into a natural bodily cavity or passage for introducing or withdrawing fluid, such as urine or blood

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catheter Scientific  

/ kăth′ĭ-tər /

1. A hollow, flexible tube inserted into a body cavity, duct, or vessel to allow the passage of fluids or distend a passageway.

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catheter Cultural  

1. A thin tube inserted into one of the channels or blood vessels in the body to remove fluids, create an opening into an internal cavity, or administer injections.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• catheters
  plural

Etymology

Origin of catheter

1595–1605; < Late Latin < Greek kathetḗr kind of tube, literally, something sent or let down, equivalent to kathe- (variant stem of kathiénai, equivalent to kat- cata- + hiénai to send, let go) + -tḗr agent suffix

Compare meaning

How does catheter compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• cannula vs. catheter

Explanation

A catheter is a thin, flexible tube that's inserted into the body to draw liquids out or keep a pathway open. It’s the kind of thing you’d get in the hospital. The word catheter is from the Greek kathienai which means, "thrust in or let down." That’s what happens when that small tube goes into your body and lets fluid out. If you have surgery in the belly area, you’ll probably need a catheter to drain the urine until you can go to the bathroom by yourself again. A catheter can also be inserted into other organs, like through a blood vessel and into the heart, to see what's going on.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

catheter catheters

Fox had had parts of his spleen, pancreas, and small and large intestine removed, and yet his tubes and catheter were out and he was already walking with a walker.

From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026

"For those seven months that I spent with a catheter, no-one suspected I could have endometriosis, so I wouldn't have been referred for any of these tests," she says.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

That gel was designed to be delivered directly into damaged heart muscle through a catheter.

From Science Daily ● May 5, 2026

First, doctors make a small puncture in an artery, usually in the groin, and feed a catheter up into the patient’s heart.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

A catheter would do it, but who has one in the mountains in the middle of the night?

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

This year, Medtronic acquired Scientia Vascular, a manufacturer of access catheters, along with nerve simulation company SPR Therapeutics.

From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026

CMS has also flagged fraud in traditional Medicare hospice care and purchases of medical equipment like catheters.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026

Staff at the emergency department there started adapting the disposable male urinal bottle for women to use, lessening the need for catheters and making life more dignified and pain-free in hospital.

From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2025

Even small and relatively inexpensive prescription medical goods such as urinary catheters can be onerous to find, especially in an emergency, the actress said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 10, 2025

The nurses work rapidly to detach the monitors and catheters and run another tube down my throat.

From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman