Adrenaline
/ˌæd.rəˈnæl.ɪn/noun
A hormone and neurotransmitter that prepares the body for sudden stress or action.
Did you know?Adrenaline was first named from Latin roots by scientists describing the adrenal glands, but the same root family also gave English words like renal and reniform—language quietly mapping the body’s hidden architecture.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
ad renes
“toward/near the kidneys”
16th Century
Latin
renes
“kidneys”
19th Century
English
adrenal
“relating to the glands above the kidneys”
1901
English
adrenaline
“the hormone extracted from the adrenal glands”
Modern English
English
adrenaline
“the body’s stress-response hormone”