ventricle

[ven-tri-kuhl]

noun

1. Zoology.,  any of various hollow organs or parts in an animal body.

2. Anatomy.

   1. either of the two lower chambers on each side of the heart that receive blood from the atria and in turn force it into the arteries.

   2. one of a series of connecting cavities of the brain.

ventricle

/ ˈvɛntrɪkəl /

noun

1. a chamber of the heart, having thick muscular walls, that receives blood from the atrium and pumps it to the arteries

2. any one of the four main cavities of the vertebrate brain, which contain cerebrospinal fluid

3. any of various other small cavities in the body

ventricle

1. A chamber of the heart that receives blood from one or more atria and pumps it by muscular contraction into the arteries. Mammals, birds, and reptiles have two ventricles; amphibians and fish have one.

2. Any of four fluid-filled cavities in the brain of vertebrate animals. The ventricles are filled with cerebrospinal fluid.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ventricle¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin ventriculus belly, ventricle. See venter, -i-, -cle ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of ventricle¹

C14: from Latin ventriculus, diminutive of venter belly

Example Sentences

Ivy has single ventricle circulation, a life-limiting heart condition, which means only one side of her heart is working.

Read more on BBC

Her daughters Lucie and Isobel, now 16 and 10 respectively, have each had a heart transplant after being diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition where the left ventricle becomes enlarged and weakened.

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Diastolic heart failure, also known as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, is a condition in which the heart's left ventricle grows stiff and can no longer pump blood properly.

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Harry Vanderspeigle has a big room in my heart, like my left ventricle.

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They examined the hearts of young and old mice and discovered that as the rodents aged, nerve fibers disappeared from the left ventricle, the chamber that pumps blood to most of the body.

Read more on Science Magazine