liver Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun large and complicated reddish-brown glandular organ located in the upper right portion of the abdominal cavity; secretes bile and functions in metabolism of protein and carbohydrate and fat; synthesizes substances involved in the clotting of the blood; synthesizes vitamin A; detoxifies poisonous substances and breaks down worn-out erythrocytes
noun liver of an animal used as meat
noun a person who has a special life style
- a high liver
noun someone who lives in a place
- a liver in cities
adjective satellite having a reddish-brown color
liver-colored.

One who, or that which, lives.
And try if life be worth the liver's care. Prior.
A resident; a dweller; as, a liver in Brooklyn.
One whose course of life has some marked characteristic (expressed by an adjective); as, a free liver.

AS. lifer; akin to D. liver, G. leber, OHG. lebara, Icel. lifr, Sw. lefver, and perh. to Gr. fat, E. live, v.

(Anat.) A very large glandular and vascular organ in the visceral cavity of all vertebrates. ✍ Most of the venous blood from the alimentary canal passes through it on its way back to the heart; and it secretes the bile, produces glycogen, and in other ways changes the blood which passes through it. In man it is situated immediately beneath the diaphragm and mainly on the right side. See Bile, Digestive, and Glycogen. The liver of invertebrate animals is usually made up of cæcal tubes, and differs materially, in form and function, from that of vertebrates.

(Zoöl.) The glossy ibis (Ibis falcinellus); -- said to have given its name to the city of Liverpool.