Word
pulmonary
Phoneticspul·monary
US/ˈpʊɫməˌnɛɹi/
UK/pˈʌlmənəɹi/
Definition
adj. relating to your lungs. Doctors use this word to describe things that happen in or affect the parts of your body you use for breathing.
adj. relating to, affecting, or occurring in the lungs. Derived from the Latin 'pulmo', it is used in medical contexts to describe anatomical structures or physiological processes.
Examples
“The doctor checked his pulmonary health.”
“The patient was referred to a specialist for a pulmonary function test to measure how well her lungs were working.”
“Pulmonary circulation is the portion of the cardiovascular system which carries deoxygenated blood away from the heart, to the lungs, and returns oxygenated blood back to the heart.”
Examples
simple
“The doctor checked his pulmonary health.”
contextual
“The patient was referred to a specialist for a pulmonary function test to measure how well her lungs were working.”
complex
“Pulmonary circulation is the portion of the cardiovascular system which carries deoxygenated blood away from the heart, to the lungs, and returns oxygenated blood back to the heart.”
Usage
Typically used attributively before a noun in medical or scientific contexts.
Real-World Examples
“In 2025, outdoor air pollution contributed to 5.5 million new cases of childhood asthma, 2 million new cases of dementia and millions of cases of heart attacks, pulmonary disease, diabetes, stroke and lung cancer.” “In 2025, outdoor air pollution contributed to 5.5 million new cases of childhood asthma, two million new cases of dementia and millions of cases of heart attack, pulmonary disease, diabetes, stroke and lung cancer.” Etymology
Borrowed from Latin pulmōnārius (“of the lungs”), from pulmō (“lung”) + -ārius, from Proto-Indo-European *pléu-mon-. Cognate with Greek πλεμόνι (plemóni), French poumon, Lithuanian plauciai, Polish płuco and Russian пла́вать (plávatʹ, “to swim”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Domain
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/pulmonary