Emunctories

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Relating to organs or structures that serve to expel waste products or secretions from the body
2. pertaining to bodily parts that help remove impurities or unnecessary substances
3. describing systems or mechanisms involved in the cleansing process within living organisms

Etymology: "Emunctories" is the plural of "emunctory," and its origin is a surprisingly blunt one: the Latin verb "emungere" meant "to blow one's nose," literally "to wipe out" the mucus. The noun "emunctorium" was used in Latin for an organ or passage that discharged waste, and the English word took on that sense of a bodily channel that clears out impurities. The word's roots are plain. The Latin past participle "emunctus" combined with the suffix "-ory," which marks a place or instrument for doing something, so an emunctory is literally a means of cleaning out. The metaphor is nasal in origin, but the term was applied to the kidneys, liver, skin, and bowels, which English writers came to treat as the body's drains.

Synonyms: excretory organs, discharge, secretions, removals, expulsions