pericardium

American  

[per-i-kahr-dee-uhm] / ˌpɛr ɪˈkɑr di əm /

noun

Anatomy.

pericardia plural

1. the membranous sac enclosing the heart.

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pericardium British  

/ ˌpɛrɪˈkɑːdɪəm /

noun

1. the membranous sac enclosing the heart

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pericardium Scientific  

/ pĕr′ĭ-kär′dē-əm /

pericardia plural

1. The membrane sac that encloses the heart in vertebrate animals.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pericardial
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pericardia
  plural

Etymology

Origin of pericardium

1570–80; < New Latin < Greek perikárdion, noun use of neuter of perikárdios surrounding the heart, equivalent to peri- peri- + kardios, adj. derivative of kardía heart; cf. -cardium

Compare meaning

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

• epicardium vs. pericardium