What does "vein" mean?
A blood vessel that transports blood from the capillaries back to the heart.
Vein
/veɪn/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A blood vessel that transports blood from the capillaries back to the heart.
- Grammar: vein is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: vena, affectation, aorta, arteriole.
- Useful contrasts: aorta, aortas, arteries.
- Usage evidence: Blood poured from the cut vein.
How to use "vein"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "vein" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "vein" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "vein" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "vein" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "vein" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "vena" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "vein", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A blood vessel that transports blood from the capillaries back to the heart.
"The nurse hovered her vein finder to locate the veins in the patient's body."
- 2 one of the horny ribs that stiffen and support the wing of an insect wordnet
- 3 The entrails of a shrimp. in-plural
- 4 a blood vessel that carries blood from the capillaries toward the heart wordnet
- 5 In leaves, a thickened portion of the leaf containing the vascular bundle.
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 a distinctive style or manner wordnet
- 7 The nervure of an insect’s wing.
- 8 a layer of ore between layers of rock wordnet
- 9 A stripe or streak of a different colour or composition in materials such as wood, cheese, marble or other rocks.
- 10 any of the vascular bundles or ribs that form the branching framework of conducting and supporting tissues in a leaf or other plant organ wordnet
- 11 A sheetlike body of crystallized minerals within a rock.
"They generally occur in the earth in what are called veins, and are seldom found in the pure metallic state, but generally in combination with some other substance, in which state they are called ores."
- 12 A topic of discussion; a train of association, thoughts, emotions, etc. figuratively
"in the same vein"
- 13 A style, tendency, or quality. figuratively
"The play is in a satirical vein."
- 14 A fissure, cleft, or cavity, as in the earth or other substance.
"down to the veins of earth"
Verb
- 1 To mark with veins or a vein-like pattern.
"[…] as he ceased from that wild imprecation, a faint flash of lightning veined the remote horizon, and a low clap of thunder rumbled afar off, echoing among the hills […]"
- 2 make a veinlike pattern wordnet
Example
"Blood poured from the cut vein."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "vein"?
Common synonyms include: vena, affectation, aorta, arteriole, artery, attitude.
How do you use "vein" in a sentence?
Blood poured from the cut vein.
How do you pronounce "vein"?
Pronounced /veɪn/.
Etymology
From Middle English veyne, borrowed from Anglo-Norman veine, from Latin vēna (“a blood-vessel; vein; artery”) of uncertain origin. See vēna for more. Doublet of vena. Displaced native edre, from ǣdre (whence edder).