Ureter
/jʊəˈriːtər/noun
Either of the two tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder.
Did you know?The word entered English through Latin from Greek ourētēr, a medical term used in ancient anatomical writing, and it survives with almost no change because physicians kept the classical label alive.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
GRK
ourētḗr (οὐρητήρ)
“a tube or duct for urine”
Classical Latin
LAT
ureter
“the ureter; a urine-carrying duct”
Middle English
EN
ureter
“a medical term for the tube carrying urine from kidney to bladder”
Modern English
EN
ureter
“either of the two ducts that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder”