Adjacent Words

sputum definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: expectorated matter; saliva mixed with discharges from the respiratory passages; in ancient and medieval physiology it was believed to cause sluggishness [syn: phlegm, sputum]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural sputa) Etymology: Latin, from neuter of sputus, past participle of spuere to spit — more at spew Date: circa 1693 expectorated matter especially from the air passages in diseases of the lungs, bronchi, or upper respiratory tract

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. sputa) 1 saliva, spittle. 2 a mixture of saliva and mucus expectorated from the respiratory tract, usu. a sign of disease. Etymology: L, neut. past part. of spuere spit

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sputum Spu"tum, n.; pl. Sputa. [L., from spuere, sputum, to spit.] That which is expectorated; a salival discharge; spittle; saliva.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Sputum is the wet substance which is coughed up from someone's lungs. (MEDICAL)