Arteries Were Named After Air
An artery carries blood away from the heart. Greek anatomists thought these vessels carried air, and the name stuck.
An artery carries blood away from the heart. The name is a mistake preserved in amber: Greek anatomists dissecting bodies found the arteries empty, because after death they contract and push blood into the veins. They concluded the vessels carried air, and named them from *aer*. The error was corrected; the name never was.
- A vessel carrying blood from the heart. *A blocked artery.*
- A major route. *A traffic artery.*
- Arterial — relating to arteries or main routes. *An arterial road.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | artery | The carotid artery. |
| Plural | arteries | Hardened arteries. |
| Adjective | arterial | Arterial blood. |
| Opposite | vein | The jugular vein. |
| Related | capillary | Capillary beds. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The aorta is the largest artery.Anatomy.
- The motorway is the region's main artery.Figurative.
- Arterial blood is brighter red.Because it carries more oxygen.
Arteries and veins
- Arteries — carry blood away from the heart
- Veins — carry blood back to the heart
- The exception — pulmonary arteries carry deoxygenated blood
- Thicker walls — arteries withstand higher pressure
- Valves — veins have them, arteries mostly do not
From Greek *arteria*, windpipe or artery, probably from *aer*, air. The same word once named the trachea.
Do arteries always carry oxygenated blood?
No. The pulmonary arteries carry deoxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs. The rule is direction, not oxygen.
Why did Greeks think arteries held air?
Because after death arteries empty, so dissections found them containing only air.