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Glite Dictionary
left atrium

left atrium

1 4.5
Upper left part of the heart that gets oxygen-rich blood from the lungs and sends it to the left ventricle
  • noun
  • /lɛft ˈeɪtriəm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : aurícula izquierda
  • During the medical exam, the doctor explained how blood flows from the lungs into the left atrium.
  • left atrium during systole

Examples

  • And if you follow the arrows here, the blood flows from the lungs into the left atrium, into the left ventricle, and out through a large vessel called the aorta.

  • The murmur results from blood leaking into the left atrium during systole.

    Academic text (2007)

  • "We're afraid your child's pulmonary veins might not be draining into the left atrium of his heart."

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Atrial fibrillation is common when the left atrium enlarges and is almost always present when the atrium is extremely large.

    Academic text (2007)

  • The mitral or bicuspid valve allows blood to flow from the left atrium into the left ventricle during diastole.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is a disorder affecting the mitral or bicuspid valve, which allows blood flow from the left atrium into the left ventricle.

    Academic text (2007)

  • The left atrium receives oxygenated blood from the lungs before sending it to the left ventricle.

  • In the human heart, the left atrium plays a crucial role in circulating oxygen-rich blood.

Synonyms

atrium sinistrum
vsleft atrium
  • Specialized
8.6

The left upper chamber of the heart that receives oxygen rich blood from the lungs

emphasizes its role pumping oxygenated blood into the left ventricle

Surface Forms

left atrium singular
left atria plural

Morphology

left + atrium

The phrase combines the adjective 'left' (indicating side) with the noun 'atrium' (a heart chamber), so its meaning—the atrium on the left side of the heart—is directly and compositionally derived from the constituents. This follows standard anatomical naming patterns found across languages and is not idiomatic or metaphorical, so a learner who knows both words will readily understand it.

Etymology

Left atrium comes from using atrium (a word for a house's entrance room) to picture the heart's entrance chamber, with left simply showing the side. So the left atrium is the upper left heart chamber that 'receives' blood from the lungs and passes it to the left ventricle.