vein

[ veyn ]

noun

1. one of the system of branching vessels or tubes conveying blood from various parts of the body to the heart.
2. (loosely) any blood vessel.
3. one of the riblike thickenings that form the framework of the wing of an insect.
4. one of the strands or bundles of vascular tissue forming the principal framework of a leaf.
5. any body or stratum of ore, coal, etc., clearly separated or defined:

   a rich vein of coal.

6. a body or mass of igneous rock, deposited mineral, or the like occupying a crevice or fissure in rock; lode.
7. a natural channel or watercourse beneath the surface of the earth.
8. the water running through such a channel.
9. a streak or marking, as of a different shade or color, running through marble, wood, etc.
10. a condition, mood, or temper:

    a vein of pessimism.

11. a tendency, quality, or strain traceable in character, conduct, writing, etc.; manner or style:

    to write in a poetic vein.

    Synonyms: thread, hint, touch, streak, tone

verb (used with object)

1. to furnish with veins.
2. to mark with lines or streaks suggesting veins.
3. to extend over or through in the manner of veins:

   Broad new highways vein the countryside.

vein

/ veɪn /

noun

1. See artery, pulmonary vein
   any of the tubular vessels that convey oxygen-depleted blood to the heart Compare pulmonary vein artery venous
2. any of the hollow branching tubes that form the supporting framework of an insect's wing
3. any of the vascular strands of a leaf
4. a clearly defined mass of ore, mineral, etc, filling a fault or fracture, often with a tabular or sheetlike shape
5. an irregular streak of colour or alien substance in marble, wood, or other material
6. a natural underground watercourse
7. a crack or fissure
8. a distinctive trait or quality in speech, writing, character, etc; strain

   a vein of humour

9. a temporary disposition, attitude, or temper; mood

   the debate entered a frivolous vein

10. a parting in hair

verb

1. to diffuse over or cause to diffuse over in streaked patterns
2. to fill, furnish, or mark with or as if with veins

vein

/ vān /

1. Any of the blood vessels that carry blood toward the heart from the body's cells, tissues, and organs. Veins are thin-walled and contain valves that prevent the backflow of blood. All veins except the pulmonary vein carry blood with low levels of oxygen.
2. One of the narrow, usually branching tubes or supporting parts forming the framework of an insect's wing or a leaf. Veins in insect wings carry hemolymph and contain a nerve. Veins in leaves contain vascular tissue, with the xylem usually occurring on the upper side of the vein (bringing in water and nutrients) and the phloem on the lower side (carrying away food).
3. See more at leaf
4. A long, narrow deposit of mineral or rock that fills the void formed by a fracture or fault in another rock. The mineralogy of the host rock surrounding the vein is often altered where it is in contact with the vein because of chemical reactions between the two rock types.

Derived Forms

• ˈveinˌlike, adjective
• ˈveinless, adjective
• ˈveiny, adjective
• ˈveinal, adjective

Other Words From

• veinal adjective
• veinless adjective
• veinlike adjective
• inter·vein verb (used with object)
• inter·veinal adjective
• subvein noun
• un·veined adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of vein¹

1250–1300; Middle English veine < Old French < Latin vēna vein of the body, channel, ore deposit

Word History and Origins

Origin of vein¹

C13: from Old French veine, from Latin vēna

Example Sentences

Compression socks apply pressure to your veins and muscles and air circulation from your feet to your heart.

From Popular-Science

In a similar vein, focus on hiring, training, and retaining talented professionals, and routinely instilling in them an emphasis on the real benefits your product provides for your customers.

From Fortune

In a similar vein, it only felt right that Kenya’s most symbolically significant FKT should also be in Kenyan hands.

From Outside Online

Along a similar vein, we have just analyzed the shape of an apple .

From Quanta Magazine

In those cases, the veins indicate that the rock had once interacted with flowing water.

From MIT Technology Review

“There is such a vein of intelligence and deeply steeped expertise among them,” he says.

From The Daily Beast

Whenever I look for a vein of sadness in Oliona it melts away.

From The Daily Beast

In the decade following World War I, Hopper settled on a vein of imagery that has been his special glory ever since.

From The Daily Beast

So in the vein of March Madness, here are my picks for the Final Four of the 2014 GOP championship of crazy.

From The Daily Beast

In that vein, Burns and Ward stress how TR, ER, and FDR “overcame … the traumas of their childhoods” and young adult lives.

From The Daily Beast

Through it runs a vein about one vara wide, extending east and west for some distance.

From Project Gutenberg

A vein of shrewd and humorous sarcasm, together with an under-current of quiet selfishness, made him a very pleasant companion. '

From Project Gutenberg

The length of the fibre, moreover, cannot be determined with any absolute certainty from the thickness of the vein.

From Project Gutenberg

We have likewise found a vein of plumbago, which was an object of search, on the supposition that it was coal.

From Project Gutenberg

The specimen of this breccia is attached to a plate of granular quartz, and may possibly have been part of a vein.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• hair
• lode
• nerve
• seam
• stripe