Gland
[glænd] or [ɡlænd]
Definition
(noun.) any of various organs that synthesize substances needed by the body and release it through ducts or directly into the bloodstream.
Typed by Ann--From WordNet
Definition
(n.) An organ for secreting something to be used in, or eliminated from, the body; as, the sebaceous glands of the skin; the salivary glands of the mouth.
(n.) An organ or part which resembles a secreting, or true, gland, as the ductless, lymphatic, pineal, and pituitary glands, the functions of which are very imperfectly known.
(n.) A special organ of plants, usually minute and globular, which often secretes some kind of resinous, gummy, or aromatic product.
(n.) Any very small prominence.
(n.) The movable part of a stuffing box by which the packing is compressed; -- sometimes called a follower. See Illust. of Stuffing box, under Stuffing.
(n.) The crosspiece of a bayonet clutch.
Inputed by Jane
Definition
n. a secreting structure which in various ways alters the material brought to it by the blood extracting and excreting waste products as in the kidneys or manufacturing valuable by-products such as the glycogen and bile of the liver: (bot.) a small cellular spot which secretes oil or aroma.—adjs. Glandif′erous bearing acorns or nuts; Gland′iform resembling a gland: nut-shaped; Gland′ūlar Gland′ūlous containing consisting of or pertaining to glands.—n. Gland′ūle a small gland.—adj. Glandūlif′erous.
Checked by Edwin
Examples
- The feathers on a duck are very heavy and close together, and at the bottom of each feather is a little oil gland that supplies a certain amount of oil to each feather. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Trained men, some of them veterinarians, in the employ of the government, make a thorough inspection of the glands and other organs of the hog. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- It may be due to a condition of fulness of the vessels of the stomach, relieved by any stimulus which, acting on the lining membrane, induces a flow of fluid from the glands. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- The mammary glands of the Ornithorhynchus may be considered, in comparison with the udders of a cow, as in a nascent condition. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
Edited by Clifford