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gland 1 (glănd)
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n.
1.
a. Any of various organs or cell groups, such as the adrenal glands and the salivary glands, that are of endothelial origin and secrete a substance that is used or excreted by the body.
b. Any of various organs, such as lymph nodes, that resemble true glands but perform a nonsecretory function.
2. Botany An organ or a structure that secretes a substance.
[French glande, from Old French glandre, alteration of Latin glandula, diminutive of glāns, gland-, acorn.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 
gland 2 (glănd)
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n.
A device, such as the outer sleeve of a stuffing box, designed to prevent a fluid from leaking past a moving machine part.
[Perhaps akin to Scots glams, jaws of a vise, pincers, probably from variant of CLAM2.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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