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Glite Dictionary
saphenous vein

saphenous vein

2 6.8
A long blood vessel near the skin of the leg that carries blood from the foot
  • noun
  • /ˈsæfɪnəs veɪn/
  • Specialized
translation icon : vena safena
  • saphenous vein graft

Examples

  • Raised plasma Lp(a) values have been associated with non-transplant CAD (n11) and saphenous vein bypass atherosclerosis.

    Academic text (1992)

  • After removing the mass with its capsule, the brachial artery was repaired with a saphenous vein graft interpositioning (Figure 15).

    Academic text (2007)

  • The surgeon explained that the saphenous vein is often used for grafting in bypass surgeries.

  • During the procedure, they harvested a section of the saphenous vein to restore blood flow to the heart.

  • The saphenous vein runs along the inner leg, making it ideal for collecting veins needed in surgery.

Synonyms

vena saphena
vssaphenous vein
  • Specialized
9.9

A large vein close to the skin of the leg that carries blood from the foot

is the English common description for those veins rather than an alternative name
great saphenous vein
vssaphenous vein
  • Specialized
4.9

A long vein that runs from the foot up the leg to the groin

is used more generally to name either of the two main superficial veins
long saphenous vein
vssaphenous vein
  • UK
6.9

A long vein that runs from the foot to the groin

is the general label for either of the two main superficial leg veins
short saphenous vein
vssaphenous vein
  • UK
6.8

A vein that carries blood from the foot up the back of the leg to the knee

is the general term for either of the two main superficial leg veins

Surface Forms

saphenous vein singular
saphenous veins plural

Morphology

saphenous + vein

While 'vein' is a transparent word meaning a blood vessel, 'saphenous' is a specialized anatomical adjective whose meaning is not compositionally clear to a B1 learner and does not indicate location or function in everyday vocabulary. Knowing the two constituents would only suggest 'a type of vein' but would not allow a learner to derive that it refers specifically to the major superficial veins of the leg, so the expression is not predictable from its parts.

Etymology

Saphenous vein comes from an old Greek word meaning 'visible', because this long vein runs close to the skin and is easy to see on the leg. So today, saphenous vein means the long surface vein that carries blood from the foot.