Glands

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɡlændz/

Definitions

1. Biological structures that generate and release essential substances such as hormones and enzymes support various physiological functions
2. Organs tasked with producing and secreting necessary fluids contribute to metabolic processes and regulation throughout the body
3. Tissues responsible for synthesizing and discharging vital compounds, including hormones and enzymes, play a key role in maintaining bodily functions and homeostasis

Etymology: "Glands" is the plural of "gland", and the word's most striking history is that it has two unrelated origins. The first, dating from the late 17th century, comes from French "glande", which descends from Latin "glandulae", the plural of "glandula", meaning "a little acorn." The Latin word itself was a diminutive of "glans", "acorn," and the link is physical: the swollen, rounded shape of an acorn was compared to the lumps of tissue in the throat and body. The second origin is a separate word. In the early 19th century, a sense of "gland" appeared that probably derives from Scots "glam", meaning "vice" or "clamp," which is related to "clamp" itself. Its exact path into the modern sense is less clear, and it is not the source of the acorn-shaped image, so the two strands of the word simply converged on the same spelling.

Synonyms: organs, tissues, secretory organs, endocrine glands, exocrine glands