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aorta

Syllabification: (a·or·ta)
Pronunciation: /āˈôrtə/

Translate aorta | into German | into Italian
Definition of aorta

noun

  • the main artery of the body, supplying oxygenated blood to the circulatory system. In humans it passes over the heart from the left ventricle and runs down in front of the backbone.

Derivatives

aortic

Pronunciation: /-tik/

adjective

Origin:

mid 16th century: from Greek aortē (used in the plural by Hippocrates for the branches of the windpipe, and by Aristotle for the great artery), from aeirein 'raise'

aorta in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of aorta in the British & World English dictionary