Word.ws English Dictionary

arterio-contractile

UK/ɑːˌtɪəɹɪəʊkənˈtɹæktaɪl/

arterio-contractile adjective: undergoing contraction due to stimulation by arterial blood.

Adjective

arterio-contractile (not comparable)

  1. (obsolete) Undergoing contraction due to stimulation by arterial blood.
    • From the facts detailed by Harvey, Goodwyn and others, which establish that in asphyxia the left ventricle of the heart ceases to contract before the right ventricle, the author infers that the irritability of the latter is greater than that of the former; and proposes to distinguish the first as...1832, “Proceedings of the Royal Society”, in The Philosophical Magazine, volume 11, page 454
    • In fact, in the midst of a suspended respiration, and an impared condition of some other functions, one vital property is augmented. This is the irritability, and especially the irritability of the left side of the heart. The left side of the heart, which is, in the hybernating animal, in its state...1833, “On Hybernation”, in The London Medical and Physical Journal, volume 69, number 79, page 58

Origin of arterio-contractile

From arteri- + -o- + contractile. Coined by English physiologist Marshall Hall in 1832 in the paper “Theory of the inverse Ratio which subsists between Respiration and Irritability in the Animal Kingdom”. Despite the initial uptake of this term, it failed to thrive, and is unattested beyond 1835, a mere three years after its coining.

Questions about arterio-contractile

What does arterio-contractile mean?
Arterio-contractile means undergoing contraction due to stimulation by arterial blood.
What part of speech is arterio-contractile?
Arterio-contractile is an adjective.
How do you pronounce arterio-contractile?
Arterio-contractile is pronounced /ɑːˌtɪəɹɪəʊkənˈtɹæktaɪl/ (UK).

Words near arterio-contractile in the dictionary

  1. arteriectomies
  2. arteriectomy
  3. arteries
  4. arteries of Adamkiewicz
  5. arterio-
  6. arterio-contractile
  7. arterio-venous
  8. arterioarterial
  9. arteriocapillary
  10. arteriocentesis
  11. arterioconstriction

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: arterio-contractile (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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