Anginas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A medical condition characterized by severe chest pain often resulting from insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle
2. The term also refers to inflammation of the throat, particularly affecting the tonsils and causing difficulty in swallowing
3. Additionally, it describes episodes of pain or discomfort that can occur during physical exertion or emotional stress, typically related to heart issues

Etymology: "Anginas" is simply the plural of "angina," so it refers to more than one case of the condition. The singular comes from Latin "angina," which meant "quinsy" (a severe throat infection, such as an abscess near the tonsils) as well as "strangling" or "choking." That sense of constriction is the thread running through the word: it was built on "angō," a Latin verb meaning "to press together," "to choke," or "to hurt," which is also the source of the Latin word for a tight, squeezing pain. The medical sense of chest pain came later, when the term was applied to the feeling of a tightening band or pressure across the chest. The Latin root explains why the word describes a sensation of being squeezed rather than a sharp stab.

Synonyms: chest pain, angina pectoris