Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A long, irregularly shaped gland in vertebrates, lying behind the stomach, that secretes pancreatic juice into the duodenum and insulin, glucagon, and somatostatin into the bloodstream.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A lobulated racemose gland, situated in the abdomen near the stomach, extending transversely from the region of the liver to that of the spleen, often inclosed in a loop of the duodenum, and pouring its secretion, pancreatic juice, into the duodenum by one or several ducts.
  • noun See the quotation.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Anat.) The sweetbread, a gland connected with the intestine of nearly all vertebrates. It is usually elongated and light-colored, and its secretion, called the pancreatic juice, is discharged, often together with the bile, into the upper part of the intestines, and is a powerful aid in digestion. See Illust. of Digestive apparatus.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a large elongated exocrine gland located behind the stomach; secretes pancreatic juice and insulin

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Greek pankreas : pan-, pan- + kreas, flesh; see kreuə- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Existing in English since the sixteenth century: from Latin pancreas, from Ancient Greek πάγκρεας (pankreas), from πᾶν (pan, "all") (equivalent to English pan-) + κρέας (kreas, "flesh").

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word pancreas.

Examples

  • With Focal KATP HI, removal of only the diseased focal area of the pancreas is attempted.

    Treatment 2010

  • In this form of HI, only a small, focal area of the pancreas is affected.

    What is HI? 2010

  • Cocaine, a pancreas is the organ in the body that will kill you if it ever becomes cancerous.

    PATRICK SWAYZE UPDATE 2008

  • If the pancreas is not making enough of these enzymes and acid buffers, a person is said to be pancreatic insufficient.

    The Pancreas and Alagille Syndrome 2009

  • The pancreas is important for the digestion and absorption of nutrients.

    The Pancreas and Alagille Syndrome 2009

  • Her cookie diet has obviously not been too helpful, because now her pancreas is infected, her liver enzymes are high, and her gall bladder is on the verge of complete mutiny.

    2009 September « Becca’s Byline 2009

  • Her cookie diet has obviously not been too helpful, because now her pancreas is infected, her liver enzymes are high, and her gall bladder is on the verge of complete mutiny.

    The Longest Day 2009

  • However, I got the last laugh because my pancreas is now fireproof … which comes in handier than you might think.

    DAVID FINCHER AND SPIKE JONZE PRESENT 2008

  • There is an organ in your body that is called the pancreas that is acutely aware of your blood sugar level.

    THE PROGRAM KELLY TRAVER 2009

  • There is an organ in your body that is called the pancreas that is acutely aware of your blood sugar level.

    THE PROGRAM KELLY TRAVER 2009

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • Al Yankovic: "My pancreas attracts every other pancreas in the universe with a force proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the distance between them"

    March 14, 2008

  • It's not just a station in London.

    March 14, 2008