Phlegm Definition & Meaning

American

British

Scientific

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Examples

Synonyms phlegm American [flem] / flɛm /

noun

1. the thick mucus secreted in the respiratory passages and discharged through the mouth, especially that occurring in the lungs and throat passages, as during a cold.

2. one of the four elemental bodily humors of medieval physiology, regarded as causing sluggishness or apathy.

3. sluggishness, indifference, or apathy.

   Synonyms: impassiveness Antonyms: concern, animation

4. self-possession, calmness, or composure.

phlegm British / flɛm /

noun

1. the viscid mucus secreted by the walls of the respiratory tract

2. archaic one of the four bodily humours

3. apathy; stolidity; indifference

4. self-possession; imperturbability; coolness

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 phlegm Scientific / flĕm /

1. Thick mucus produced by the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, as during a cold or other respiratory infection.

Other Word Forms

• phlegmless adjective
• phlegmy adjective

Etymology

Origin of phlegm

1350–1400; Middle English fleem < Middle French flemme < Late Latin phlegma < Greek phlégma flame, phlegmatic humor, equivalent to phlég ( ein ) to burn + -ma resultative noun suffix

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

If it's a chesty cough then many find themselves battling what can feel like oceans of phlegm and a tight chest.

From BBC

In theory, each ingredient plays a role: one dries secretions, another loosens phlegm, a third dulls the cough reflex.

From BBC

She said Hannah's reaction "happened quickly" and she was coughing up phlegm.

From BBC

The bacterium that causes tuberculosis glows yellow in this phlegm sample; in orange are possible immune cells from the lung.

From New York Times

Many infections involve dry coughs that don't produce phlegm at all.

From National Geographic

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.