kid·ney | \ ˈkid-nē 
\
\ plural kidneys
Definition of kidney
1a : one of a pair of vertebrate organs situated in the body cavity near the spinal column that excrete waste products of metabolism, in humans are bean-shaped organs about 4¹/₂ inches (11¹/₂ centimeters) long lying behind the peritoneum in a mass of fatty tissue, and consist chiefly of nephrons by which urine is secreted, collected, and discharged into a main cavity from which it is conveyed by the ureter to the bladder
b : any of various excretory organs of invertebrate animals
2 : the kidney of an animal eaten as food
3 : sort or kind especially with regard to temperament
a nice helpful guy, of a different kidney entirely from the … Secret Police— Paula Lecler
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Synonyms for kidney
Synonyms
- breed,
- class,
- description,
- feather,
- genre,
- ilk,
- kind,
- like,
- manner,
- nature,
- order,
- sort,
- species,
- strain,
- stripe,
- type,
- variety
Examples of kidney in a Sentence
a patient with a damaged kidney
her new boyfriend is of a different kidney than what she usually dates
Recent Examples on the Web Black and Latino children have also disproportionately come down with a constellation of serious heart, gastrointestinal, and kidney complications following bouts with Covid-19.
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Megan Molteni, Wired, "Everything We Know Now About Schools, Kids, and Covid-19," 15 Jan. 2021 Mothers who have high blood pressure experience higher rates of heart attacks, severe bleeding and kidney failure, and babies are more likely to have birth defects, issues getting nutrients from the placenta and premature birth.
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Marina Starleaf Riker, ExpressNews.com, "Texas lawmakers aim to make maternal health a priority this year," 14 Jan. 2021 Oxalates can also increase the risk of kidney stones in some people.
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Jill Joyce, The Conversation, "Anti-nutrients – they’re part of a normal diet and not as scary as they sound," 12 Jan. 2021 According to the Oxford University team that developed it, the original HEK293 cells were taken from the kidney of an aborted fetus in 1973, but the cells used now are clones of the original cells and are not the original fetal tissue.
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David Crary, ajc, "Anti-abortion faith leaders support use of COVID-19 vaccines," 10 Jan. 2021 According to the Oxford University team that developed it, the original HEK293 cells were taken from the kidney of an aborted fetus in 1973, but the cells used now are clones of the original cells and are not the original fetal tissue.
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David Crary, Star Tribune, "Anti-abortion faith leaders support use of COVID-19 vaccines," 10 Jan. 2021 His kidney issues were discovered about a decade ago.
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Meredith Colias-pete, chicagotribune.com, "Decades revisited: For newlywed Hobart kidney recipient, a year of gratitude: ‘I am exactly where I’m supposed to be’," 30 Dec. 2020 The historic vertical kidney grille has grown to the size of a liver, and that has made some stomachs ache.
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Austin Irwin, Car and Driver, "The Year in Pictures: Car and Driver’s Best Photos of 2020," 29 Dec. 2020 Six years later, at his first job at Hockanum Elementary in East Hartford, Bocchichio donated his left kidney to Evelyn Arroyo, the mother of one of his students.
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Lori Riley, courant.com, "‘This is about the power of love and caring’: Over $40K raised for East Hartford gym teacher battling rare disease amid life of service, atonement," 28 Dec. 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'kidney.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for kidney
kidney
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of kidney
: either of two organs in your body that remove waste products from your blood and make urine
: an animal kidney used as food
See the full definition for kidney in the English Language Learners Dictionary
kidney
nounkid·ney | \ ˈkid-nē \
\ plural kidneys
Kids Definition of kidney
: either of a pair of organs near the backbone that give off waste from the body in the form of urine and in humans are bean-shaped
kidney
nounkid·ney | \ ˈkid-nē \
\ plural kidneys
Medical Definition of kidney
1 : one of a pair of vertebrate organs situated in the body cavity near the spinal column that excrete waste products of metabolism, in humans are bean-shaped organs about 4¹/₂ inches (11¹/₂ centimeters) long lying behind the peritoneum in a mass of fatty tissue, and consist chiefly of nephrons by which urine is secreted, collected, and discharged into the renal pelvis whence it is conveyed by the ureter to the bladder — compare mesonephros, metanephros, pronephros
2 : any of various excretory organs of invertebrate animals
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The first known use of kidney was in the 14th century
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