saline
Americanadjective
-
of, containing, or resembling common table salt; salty or saltlike.
a saline solution.
-
of or relating to a chemical salt, especially of sodium, potassium, magnesium, etc., as used as a cathartic.
-
of or relating to a method of abortion involving injection of hypertonic saline solution into the amniotic cavity during the second trimester.
noun
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a sterile solution of sodium chloride used to dilute medications or for intravenous therapy.
-
salty water; a salty solution.
adjective
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of, concerned with, consisting of, or containing common salt
a saline taste
-
med of or relating to a saline
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of, concerned with, consisting of, or containing any chemical salt, esp a metallic salt resembling sodium chloride
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of saline
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English: “composed of salt,” from Latin salīnus “salty,” equivalent to sal “salt” + -īnus adjective suffix; see sal, -ine 1
Explanation
Saline is an adjective that means "salty." While "salty" is a perfectly good word to use when describing French fries or tears, saline tends to be a word you might hear in a more official setting, like in a hospital or in a geology class. If you watch a lot of hospital dramas on TV, you have definitely heard the exclamation, “Nurse, the patient needs an IV saline solution, stat!” because sick people in hospitals tend to get saline solutions to keep them hydrated. Saline mostly has a scientific meaning; it is not usually used to mean salty tasting. If you want to get really scientific, salt is actually called sodium chloride, but "sodium chloride pretzels" would probably not fly off the grocery store shelves.
Vocabulary lists containing saline
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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.
The salt is produced by pumping saline water from bore-wells into shallow pans, where the liquid evaporates under the sun and wind.
From Barron's • May 10, 2026
Water running off farmlands flows into the saline lake, and less water would shrink the lake faster, affecting wildlife and nearby communities where windblown dust brings high asthma rates and other health problems.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 4, 2026
These included higher elevation areas with more moisture and vegetation, highly saline zones exposed to intense UV radiation, and fog-fed oases where plant life flourishes against the odds.
From Science Daily • Mar. 2, 2026
For hours, they were unconscious, neighbours later said - revived with water, then saline injections as the house filled with people and cries.
From BBC • Feb. 15, 2026
In the emergency room, they used an IV to give her five liters of saline.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
