kidney
Americannoun
plural
kidneys-
Anatomy. either of a pair of bean-shaped organs in the back part of the abdominal cavity that form and excrete urine, regulate fluid and electrolyte balance, and act as endocrine glands.
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Zoology. a corresponding organ in other vertebrate animals or an organ of like function in invertebrates.
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the meat of an animal's kidney used as food.
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constitution or temperament.
He was a quiet child, of a different kidney from his boisterous brothers.
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kind, sort, or class.
He is only at ease with men of his own kidney.
noun
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either of two bean-shaped organs at the back of the abdominal cavity in man, one on each side of the spinal column. They maintain water and electrolyte balance and filter waste products from the blood, which are excreted as urine
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the corresponding organ in other animals
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the kidneys of certain animals used as food
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class, type, or disposition (esp in the phrases of the same or a different kidney )
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Either of a pair of organs that are located in the rear of the abdominal cavity in vertebrates. The kidneys regulate fluid balance in the body and filter out wastes from the blood in the form of urine. The functional unit of the kidney is the nephron. Wastes filtered from the blood by the nephrons drain into the ureters, muscular tubes that connect each kidney to the bladder.
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See also nephron
Other Word Forms
- kidneylike adjective
Etymology
Origin of kidney
1275–1325; Middle English kidenei, kidenere (singular), kideneres, kideneren (plural); origin uncertain; perhaps a compound based either on nere (singular), neres (plural) kidney ( Old English *nēore; compare Old High German nioro, Old Norse nȳra ); or ei (singular), eiren (plural) egg 1, Old English ǣg (singular), ǣgru (plural) (by association with the organ's shape); for the first element compare dial. kid pod (akin to cod 2 )
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.
Problems were seen in iron recycling within the spleen and in the normal functioning of the lungs, intestines and kidneys.
From Science Daily
Amy is now at risk of bowel obstruction and possible kidney failure and is considered an urgent case but remains stuck on a surgery waiting list and feels like she has been "left to rot".
From BBC
In 2023, doctors in Taiwan removed more than 300 kidney stones from a 20 year old woman who had reportedly been drinking bubble tea instead of water.
From Science Daily
Certain muscle and kidney cell populations declined sharply, while immune cells expanded considerably.
From Science Daily
The kidney dialysis company got a lift after it breezed past expectations for fourth-quarter earnings.
From Barron's
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.
