abdomen

noun ab·do·men \ ˈab-də-mən , -ˌdō- ; əb-ˈdō-mən , ab- \

|Updated on: 8 Jul 2018

Definition of abdomen

1 : the part of the body between the thorax and the pelvis; also : the cavity of this part of the trunk containing the chief viscera

2 : the posterior section of the body behind the thorax in an arthropod — see insect illustration

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abdominal

play \ab-ˈdä-mə-nᵊl, əb-, -ˈdäm-nᵊl\ adjective

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abdominally

play \-ē\ adverb

See abdomen defined for English-language learners

See abdomen defined for kids

Examples of abdomen in a Sentence

showed us a tiny tattoo on her abdomen, right next to her belly button

Recent Examples of abdomen from the Web

He was shot in the hand, and also had a graze wound to his abdomen.

— christine dempsey, courant.com, "Teen Shot Himself By Accident In Hartford On July 4, Police Say," 5 July 2018
Ryan was diagnosed with a Wilms tumor, a pediatric kidney cancer, on his right kidney that spread to his abdomen, said Lurie’s Advance Practice Nurse Karina Danner-Koptik, who treats Ryan.

— alexandra kukulka, chicagotribune.com, "Northbrook cancer survivor holds bar mitzvah at hospital where he received treatment," 12 June 2018
The victim was still hospitalized as of Friday morning with a fractured jaw, stab wounds to her abdomen, marks from being hit with a blunt object and a leg infection, Hampden County District Attorney Anthony Gulluni said at a news conference.

— NBC News, "3 bodies found at home of Massachusetts man accused of kidnapping, torture," 1 June 2018
In the final phases, the spiders would raise their abdomens, point their bodies in the direction of the wind and spin up to 60 ballooning silks that stretched an average of 10 feet long.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "Before Soaring Through the Air, Tiny Crab Spiders Study the Wind," 18 June 2018
One particularly enthusiastic woman lifts her blouse and asks Majerle to sign her abdomen.

— scott bordow, azcentral, "Phoenix Suns – and fans – reach silver anniversary of love affair with 1993 Western Conference champions," 16 June 2018
Ten to 20 percent of patients with diverticulosis develop a complication known as diverticulitis, in which the diverticula become inflamed, leading to chronic abdominal pain, perforation of the colon, or infection inside the abdomen.

— andrea k. mcdaniels, baltimoresun.com, "Diverticulitis can cause digestive problems for some," 7 June 2018
Symptoms including fatigue, weight loss, and abdomen pain often don’t occur until after the disease has spread.

— lindsey tanner, BostonGlobe.com, "Study finds rare gain for tough-to-treat pancreatic cancer," 4 June 2018
Subsequent pathology examinations found wounds on her neck, scalp and left eye along with abrasions to her nose, chin, abdomen, knees, arms and knuckles, and the death was reclassified as a homicide, prosecutors said.

— george houde, chicagotribune.com, "Comments that suburban woman had made about husband who now is accused of killing her can be used at trial: judge," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'abdomen.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of abdomen

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Latin abdōmen "fat underpart of an animal, belly, paunch," of uncertain origin

Note: Often seen as a derivative of abdere, "to hide, conceal," i.e., "that which is hidden," based on a nominal ablaut form *dhoh₁- from the root *dheh₁- "put." However, Latin abdōmen refers primarily to a body part of animals, and more or less humorously of humans; such usage suggests something prominent rather than something concealed, so the derivation looks somewhat unlikely.

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1541

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

abdomen Synonyms

Synonyms

belly, breadbasket [slang], gut, solar plexus, stomach, tummy;

Related Words

middle, midriff, waist;

paunch, potbelly;

thorax;

Other Anatomy Terms

bilateral symmetry, carotid, cartilage, dorsal, entrails, prehensile, renal, solar plexus, supine, thoracic, ventral

ABDOMEN Defined for English Language Learners

abdomen

noun

Definition of abdomen for English Language Learners

: the part of the body below the chest that contains the stomach and other organs
: the rear part of an insect's body

ABDOMEN Defined for Kids

abdomen

noun ab·do·men \ ˈab-də-mən , ab-ˈdō- \

Definition of abdomen for Students

1 : the part of the body between the chest and the hips including the cavity containing the stomach and other digestive organs

2 : the hind part of the body of an arthropod (as an insect)

Medical Dictionary

abdomen

noun ab·do·men \ ˈab-də-mən, -ˌdō-; əb-ˈdō-mən, ab- \

medical Definition of abdomen

1 a : the part of the body between the thorax and the pelvis with the exception of the back — called also belly

b : the cavity of this part of the trunk lined by the peritoneum, enclosed by the body walls, the diaphragm, and the pelvic floor, and containing the visceral organs (as the stomach, intestines, and liver)

c : the portion of this cavity between the diaphragm and the brim of the pelvis — compare pelvic cavity

2 : the posterior often elongated region of the body behind the thorax in arthropods