Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Yesterday's Word

Archives

FAQ



Mar 5, 2026
This week’s theme
Words one letter apart

This week’s words
incubous
morose
porose
perfusion
profusion

perfusion
Norham Castle, Sunrise, 1845
Art: J.M.W. Turner

Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

perfusion

PRONUNCIATION:
(puhr-FYOO-zhuhn)

MEANING:
noun:
1. The spreading of a liquid, color, light, aroma, etc.
2. The passage of a fluid through an organ or tissue, for example, to supply nutrients or oxygen.

ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin perfundere (to drench), from per- (through) + fundere (to pour). Earliest documented use: 1574.

USAGE:
“Meanwhile, eGenesis has approval for a trial of a pig-liver perfusion . Unlike a full transplant, this keeps the organ outside the patient’s body, although hooked up to his circulatory system. With help from an organ-preserving device developed by OrganOx, a spin-out from the University of Oxford, the hope is that the pig liver can keep the patient alive until a human organ is ready.”
A New Lease of Life; The Economist (London, UK); Nov 1, 2025.

See more usage examples of perfusion in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Sometimes they seem like living shapes, / The people of the sky, / Guests in white raiment coming down / From heaven, which is close by. -Lucy Larcom, teacher and author (5 Mar 1824-1893)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2026 Wordsmith