Meaning & use
gland
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
An organ or group of cells in the body that makes and releases a substance, such as a hormone, sweat, or saliva.
Grammar: Countable: you can talk about one gland or several glands.
Patterns
- a gland produces something
- a gland releases something
- the adrenal gland
- the thyroid gland
The thyroid gland controls how fast your body uses energy.
Sweat glands in the skin help cool the body.
The doctor checked the lymph glands in his neck.
Word forms
| plural | glands |
|---|
Common combinations
- sweat gland
- Sweat glands become more active in hot weather.
- thyroid gland
- The thyroid gland sits at the front of the neck.
- lymph gland
- Her lymph glands were swollen during the infection.
- adrenal gland
- The adrenal glands sit on top of the kidneys.
- glandular tissue
- The biopsy showed abnormal glandular tissue.
Word family
- glandular adjective
- relating to or affecting a gland
Commonly confused: gland or glans?
gland vs glans
Glans is a different word: it means the rounded tip of the penis or clitoris.
Practice
The thyroid ______ produces hormones that control metabolism.
Choose one answer.
"Gland" is the singular countable noun needed here. "Glandular" is an adjective, "glands" is plural and would need a plural verb, and "glandes" is not an English word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gland”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.