Definition of capillary
1a : resembling a hair especially in slender elongated form capillary leavesb : having a very small bore a capillary tube
2 : involving, held by, or resulting from surface tension capillary water in the soil
3 : of or relating to capillaries or capillarity
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Recent Examples of capillary from the Web
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Einstein was siding with younger, more radical physicists who believed that capillary action was just one of many phenomena that could be explained by the way atoms and molecules interact.
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Alternative ideas for lie detection include the polygraph, a device measuring things like heart rate, skin conductivity, and capillary dilation.
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The philosophy was that this approach was more effective in building a capillary network, which, in turn, got oxygen to the muscles more efficiently.
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Most lead tests in children are taken by pricking the finger or heel to draw samples of capillary blood for testing.
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F.D.A. officials estimate that eight million tests have been run using the Magellan system since 2014, but said the majority were done using capillary blood, not blood drawn from the vein.
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The test uses a process called capillary electrophoresis to separate a liquid into its independent components.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'capillary.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of capillary
French or Latin; French capillaire, from Latin capillaris, from capillus hair
Other Anatomy Terms
capillary
Definition of capillary
capillaries
1 : a minute thin-walled vessel of the body; especially : any of the smallest blood vessels connecting arterioles with venules and forming networks throughout the body
2 : a tube (as of glass) having a very small bore
Recent Examples of capillary from the Web
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An increasingly popular alternative is optical heart rate sensors, which shine a light into your capillaries to observe your blood flow, most commonly at your wrist.
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The scalp-cooling cap constricts the capillaries around the hair follicles, decreasing the amount of chemotherapy drugs that the follicles receive, Abraham explained.
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Kurzweil described how our brains might someday interface directly with non-biological forms of intelligence, possibly with the help of nano-bots that travel through our capillaries.
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Davis compared the water system to blood vessels — huge arteries close to the heart, and tiny capillaries in the extremities.
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His capillaries began seeping water into his tissues.
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Van Leeuwenhoek took a live eel and a couple of microscopes and spent two hours with the czar gazing at blood rushing through the capillaries of the eel’s tail.
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Di Bernardo suffers from hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia, or HHT, which makes the body create blood vessels without the typical capillaries that go between arteries and veins.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'capillary.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of capillary
1667
Other Anatomy Terms
CAPILLARY Defined for English Language Learners
capillary
Definition of capillary for English Language Learners
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: one of the many very small tubes that carry blood within the body : the smallest kind of blood vessel
CAPILLARY Defined for Kids
Definition of capillary for Students
1 : having a long slender form and a small inner diameter a capillary tube
2 : of or relating to capillary action or a capillary
Definition of capillary for Students
capillaries
: one of the slender hairlike tubes that are the smallest blood vessels and connect arteries with veins
Medical Dictionary
Medical Definition of capillary
1a: resembling a hair especially in slender elongated formb: having a very small bore a capillary tube
2: involving, held by, or resulting from surface tension
3: of or relating to capillaries or capillarity
capillary
Medical Definition of capillary
capillaries
1: a minute thin-walled vessel of the body; especially : any of the smallest blood vessels connecting arterioles with venules and forming networks throughout the body
2: a capillary tube
Illustration of capillary
Learn More about capillary
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See words that rhyme with capillary Spanish Central: Translation of capillary Nglish: Translation of capillary for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of capillary for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about capillary
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