congestive heart failure

noun

: heart failure in which the heart is unable to maintain an adequate circulation of blood in the bodily tissues or to pump out the venous blood returned to it by the veins

Examples of congestive heart failure in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Black, one of the state's longest serving death row inmates, suffers from congestive heart failure. —Kelly Puente, Nashville Tennessean, 19 July 2025

Madsen, who was found dead yesterday of congestive heart failure at his home in Malibu, was a superb and prolific actor. —Matt Zoller Seitz, Vulture, 4 July 2025

Tim Harmon, a community advocate and eccentric collector best known for curating one of the nation’s largest personal collections of Statues of Liberty, died June 30, from congestive heart failure. —Samanta Habashy, IndyStar, 3 July 2025

The cause was congestive heart failure, his wife Kim DeVane said by phone. —Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 6 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

congestive heart failure

noun

con·​ges·​tive heart failure

kən-ˈjes-tiv-

: heart failure in which the heart is unable to keep enough blood circulating in the tissues or is unable to pump out the blood returned to it by the veins

Medical Definition

congestive heart failure

noun

: heart failure in which the heart is unable to maintain adequate circulation of blood in the tissues of the body or to pump out the venous blood returned to it by the venous circulation compare coronary failure