alveolusnoun [ C ]
uk/ˌæl.viˈəʊ.ləs/us/ælˈviː.ə.ləs/plural alveoli uk/-laɪ/usspecializedone of the many very small air bags in the lungs, with thin walls that allow oxygen to enter the blood
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Substances & structures in the body
- abductor
- accessorius
- adductor
- agonist
- amyloid
- atheroma
- caecum
- grey matter
- gyrus
- hallucis
- hilum
- hilus
- lymph vessel
- peptic
- periosteum
- peritoneal
- peritoneum
- phosphatase
- vitreous humour
- xiphoid
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Examples from literature
- The carbon dioxide, on the other hand, being in excess in the blood, diffuses toward the air in the alveoli.
- The epithelial cells are not arranged on any definite plan, but are closely packed in irregularly shaped alveoli.
- The small pits are alveoli, and the vessels in their walls are chiefly capillaries.
- Their exchanges must in all cases take place through the capillary walls and the layer of cells lining the alveoli.
- Trace the blood from the right ventricle to the alveoli and back again to the left auricle.