AIR SAC

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does air sac mean? 

• AIR SAC (noun)
  The noun AIR SAC has 3 senses:

1. a tiny sac for holding air in the lungs; formed by the terminal dilation of tiny air passageways

2. any of the thin-walled extensions of the tracheae of insects

3. any of the membranous air-filled extensions of the lungs of birds

  Familiarity information: AIR SAC used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• AIR SAC (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A tiny sac for holding air in the lungs; formed by the terminal dilation of tiny air passageways

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Synonyms:

air cell; air sac; alveolus

Hypernyms ("air sac" is a kind of...):

sac (a structure resembling a bag in an animal)

Holonyms ("air sac" is a part of...):

lung (either of two saclike respiratory organs in the chest of vertebrates; serves to remove carbon dioxide and provide oxygen to the blood)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Any of the thin-walled extensions of the tracheae of insects

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("air sac" is a kind of...):

sac (a structure resembling a bag in an animal)

Holonyms ("air sac" is a part of...):

insect (small air-breathing arthropod)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Any of the membranous air-filled extensions of the lungs of birds

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("air sac" is a kind of...):

sac (a structure resembling a bag in an animal)

Holonyms ("air sac" is a part of...):

bird (warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings)

 Context examples 

COPD includes chronic bronchitis, in which the bronchi (large air passages) are inflamed and scarred, and emphysema, in which the alveoli (tiny air sacs) are damaged.

(COPD, NCI Dictionary)

A disorder affecting the alveoli (tiny air sacs) of the lungs.

(Emphysema, NCI Dictionary)

Emphysema is a type of COPD involving damage to the air sacs (alveoli) in the lungs.

(Emphysema, NIH)

The layer of cells covering the lining of the tiny air sacs at the end of the bronchioles.

(Alveolar Epithelium, NCI Thesaurus)

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease includes chronic bronchitis, in which the bronchi (large air passages) are inflamed and scarred, and emphysema, in which the alveoli (tiny air sacs) are damaged.

(Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, NCI Dictionary)

Tiny air sacs at the end of the bronchioles (tiny branches of air tubes) in the lungs.

(Alveoli, NCI Dictionary)

They indicate inflammation, fluid, or infection in the air sacs of the lung.

(Basilar Rales, NCI Thesaurus)

A disease in which the alveoli (tiny air sacs at the end of the bronchioles in the lungs) are overgrown with fibrous tissue.

(Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, NCI Dictionary)

A chronic and progressive lung disorder characterized by the loss of elasticity of the bronchial tree and the air sacs, destruction of the air sacs wall, thickening of the bronchial wall, and mucous accumulation in the bronchial tree.

(Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, NCI Thesaurus)