innards
Americannoun
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the internal parts of the body; entrails or viscera.
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the internal mechanism, parts, structure, etc., of something; the interior of something.
an engine's innards.
plural noun
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the internal organs of the body, esp the viscera
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the interior parts or components of anything, esp the working parts
Etymology
Origin of innards
1815–25; variant of inwards ( def. ), noun use of inward
Explanation
Your innards are your stomach, intestines, and other abdominal organs. Catching a fish is fun, but gutting it, or removing its innards, is less fun. The slang term innards is sometimes used to mean "the parts of the digestive system," and other times refers more generally to any of the inside parts or organs of a human or animal body. Innards was coined in the 1800s, originally spelled innerds, from a dialect form of inwards, and meaning "the bowels."
Vocabulary lists containing innards
"Civil Peace" by Chinua Achebe
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The Odyssey
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"Fine?" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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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.
Some days, scientists would show the team gathered around the table ripped-up innards of diapers they were analyzing.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026
They are not showing signs off rapidly building inflationary pressures in the innards of the economy.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 18, 2026
The engine will spin like the innards of a kaleidoscope and embedded in the bike will be a small mini-game.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 7, 2026
Step closer and you hear the contraption appearing to breathe, a tinkling sound like wind chimes emanating from the cooling mechanism that keeps its innards colder than outer space.
From Barron's • Dec. 10, 2025
She felt like a pumpkin whose innards have been scooped out for Halloween.
From "Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World" by Ashley Herring Blake
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.
