diastole
Americannoun
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Physiology. the normal rhythmical dilatation of the heart during which the chambers are filling with blood.
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Prosody. the lengthening of a syllable regularly short, especially before a pause or at the ictus.
noun
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The period during the normal beating of the heart in which the chambers of the heart dilate and fill with blood. Diastole of the atria occurs before diastole of the ventricles.
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Compare systole
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of diastole
1570–80; < Late Latin diastolē < Greek diastolḗ a putting asunder, dilation, lengthening; compare diastéllein to set apart, equivalent to dia- dia- + stéllein to put, place
Explanation
When your heart beats, it squeezes and relaxes; diastole is when it relaxes and fills with blood. Since the 16th century, doctors have used the Greek word diastole, or "dilation," for the stage in the cardiac cycle when the heart muscle relaxes and its ventricles dilate, or widen. The contraction that follows is called systole. Every beat of your heart is a repetition of these two phases, with a drop in blood pressure during diastole as its chambers are refilled.
Vocabulary lists containing diastole
Vocabulary from Readings 4, Unit 1
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Vocabulary from Readings 4, Unit 1
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"Frederick Douglass" by Robert Hayden
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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.
During diastole, the artery walls return to normal.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
The heart contracts to pump blood through the body during diastole and is filled with blood during systole.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
The blood pressure of the systole phase and the diastole phase, graphed in Figure 31.20, gives the two pressure readings for blood pressure.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
However as the HR rises, there is less time spent in diastole and consequently less time for the ventricles to fill with blood.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013
Some idea of them may be obtained from the alternating expansions and compressions or dilations and contractions in the heart and lungs, called in the heart systole and diastole, and in the lungs respirations.
From Angelic Wisdom about Divine Providence by William F. Wunsch
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