lung

American  

[luhng] / lʌŋ /

noun

• lungs
  plural

1. either of the two saclike respiratory organs in the thorax of humans and the higher vertebrates.

2. an analogous organ in certain invertebrates, as arachnids or terrestrial gastropods.

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idioms

1. at the top of one's lungs, as loudly as possible; with full voice.

   The baby cried at the top of his lungs.

lung British  

/ lʌŋ /

noun

1. either one of a pair of spongy saclike respiratory organs within the thorax of higher vertebrates, which oxygenate the blood and remove its carbon dioxide

2. any similar or analogous organ in other vertebrates or in invertebrates

3. in one's loudest voice; yelling

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lung Scientific  

/ lŭng /

1. Either of two spongy organs in the chest of air-breathing vertebrate animals that serve as the organs of gas exchange. Blood flowing through the lungs picks up oxygen from inhaled air and releases carbon dioxide, which is exhaled. Air enters and leaves the lungs through the bronchial tubes.

2. A similar organ found in some invertebrates.

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lung More Idioms  

1. see at the top of one's lungs.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• half-lunged
  adjective
• lunged
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• lungs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lung

before 1000; Middle English lungen, Old English; cognate with German Lunge; akin to light ², lights

Explanation

A lung is an internal organ that makes it possible for you to breathe. Your lungs remove carbon dioxide from your body while sending oxygen into your blood stream. All vertebrates — animals with a spinal column — have lungs. Humans have two of them, and they're what makes your chest rise and fall as you breathe in and out. They're also the organs that keep you breathing, and therefore alive. Lung, by way of the Old English lungen, comes from an Indo-European root that literally means "the light organ."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lung lungs

When heat and sunlight react with airborne emissions from wildfires, vehicles and industry, they create ground-level ozone pollution, which can damage lung tissue, cause breathing problems, trigger asthma attacks and lead to other health issues.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

Professor Isabel Oliver, chief medical officer for Wales, said air pollution was a serious public health issue that contributed to a range of conditions including heart and lung disease.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

The subject—given no hope of recovery, or of a very long life—used performance art to exert control over his body, his world, and the lung disorder that had plagued him since birth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

An immune system that appeared biologically older, for example, was linked to early-onset lung cancer.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

“My lung function is down to thirty-five percent,” I say as I turn the camera back to me.

From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott

This can be on the bowel or in the lungs - and the cells multiply, creating raw and angry sores.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Patients can eventually lose the ability to swallow, increasing the risk of pneumonia if food or liquid enters the lungs, and later may lose the ability to breathe.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 21, 2026

Kate Wills, 51, has HER2-low metastatic breast cancer, which has spread to her bones and lungs.

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

In addition to reducing exacerbations, the drug also reduced mucus plugging in lungs, AstraZeneca said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Mother catches her—a girl, with a full head of dark hair and a strong set of lungs.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar