apocrine gland
noun
: a gland and especially a sweat gland that secretes a viscous fluid into a hair follicle (as in the armpit or groin), is lined with a single layer of usually columnar cells, and typically does not become active until puberty
Note: It is now understood that apocrine glands produce a secretion which lacks cellular material and causes little damage to the secreting cell. While this secretion pattern is more closely related to the merocrine than the apocrine type, these glands continue to be referred to as apocrine glands because of their uniquely characteristic large secretory lumen and milky secretion.
compare eccrine glandExamples of apocrine gland in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Called apocrine glands, they are primarily concentrated in the armpits and around the groin.
—
Amanda Schupak, CNN, 12 Jan. 2025
Bacteria Your body has two major types of sweat glands—eccrine and apocrine glands.
—Heidi Cope, Health, 23 Dec. 2024
So yes, sometimes your salty floods do have an odor to them, but the vast majority of human odor comes from these apocrine glands that are in your armpits.
Klimek: Does sweat play a role in how humans perceive one another?
—Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 July 2024
Those hotspots contain apocrine glands, which produce sweat and odor, Massick explained.
—Korin Miller, Health, 11 July 2024
Our closer relatives, chimpanzees and gorillas, bear roughly two eccrine for every one apocrine gland.
—Jeff Goodell, Time, 6 July 2023
Many furred mammals have apocrine glands, including camels and donkeys, as well as chimpanzees.
—Jeff Goodell, Time, 6 July 2023
Old World monkeys like macaques have equal parts eccrine and apocrine glands.
—Jeff Goodell, Time, 6 July 2023
That type of sweat comes from the apocrine glands, which are located mainly in the underarm and groin.
—Robert J. Davis, CNN, 28 Feb. 2018
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Amanda Schupak, CNN, 12 Jan. 2025
Bacteria Your body has two major types of sweat glands—eccrine and apocrine glands.
—Heidi Cope, Health, 23 Dec. 2024
So yes, sometimes your salty floods do have an odor to them, but the vast majority of human odor comes from these apocrine glands that are in your armpits.
Klimek: Does sweat play a role in how humans perceive one another?
—Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 July 2024
Those hotspots contain apocrine glands, which produce sweat and odor, Massick explained.
—Korin Miller, Health, 11 July 2024
Our closer relatives, chimpanzees and gorillas, bear roughly two eccrine for every one apocrine gland.
—Jeff Goodell, Time, 6 July 2023
Many furred mammals have apocrine glands, including camels and donkeys, as well as chimpanzees.
—Jeff Goodell, Time, 6 July 2023
Old World monkeys like macaques have equal parts eccrine and apocrine glands.
—Jeff Goodell, Time, 6 July 2023
That type of sweat comes from the apocrine glands, which are located mainly in the underarm and groin.
—Robert J. Davis, CNN, 28 Feb. 2018
Cite this Entry
“Apocrine gland.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/apocrine%20gland. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
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