Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

plethysmograph

American  
[pluh-thiz-muh-graf, -grahf] / pləˈθɪz məˌgræf, -ˌgrɑf /

noun

  1. a device for measuring and recording changes in the volume of the body or of a body part or organ.


plethysmograph British  
/ pləˈθɪzməˌɡrɑːf, -ˌɡræf, -ˈθɪs- /

noun

  1. a device for measuring the fluctuations in volume of a bodily organ or part, such as those caused by variations in the amount of blood it contains

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms


Etymology

Origin of plethysmograph

First recorded in 1870–75; from Greek plēthysm(ós) “increase, multiplication” ( plēthý(nein) “to increase,” derivative of plêthos “large number, crowd” + -smos, variant of -mos noun suffix) + -o- + -graph; first coined in Italian as pletismografo


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.

See Examples For:

Strapped to their type of plethysmograph, they responded in predictable patterns she labelled "category specific".

From The Guardian ● Jul. 5, 2013

If this proved to be true, what would it mean for all these plethysmograph studies?

From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2013

Tulane's Drs. George E. Burch and Clarence T. Ray, searching for a simple means of registering psychosomatic disturbances "objectively," used a "plethysmograph."

From Time Magazine Archive

I think the experimental psychologists called the thing a "plethysmograph."

From The Silent Bullet by Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin) Reeve

See, when I winced then, the plethysmograph recorded it.

From The Treasure-Train by Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin) Reeve

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 14,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training