Embolus

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Embolus \Em"bo*lus\, n.; pl. {Emboli}. [L., fr. Gr. ? pointed so
     as to be put or thrust in, fr. ? to throw, thrust, or put in.
     See {Emblem}.]
     1. Something inserted, as a wedge; the piston or sucker of a
        pump or syringe.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. (Med.) A plug of some substance lodged in a blood vessel,
        being brought thither by the blood current. It consists
        most frequently of a clot of fibrin, a detached shred of a
        morbid growth, a globule of fat, or a microscopic
        organism.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  embolus
       n : an abnormal particle (e.g. an air bubble or part of a clot)
           circulating in the blood
       [also: {emboli} (pl)]