spleen
/spliːn
/noun
1 Anatomy An abdominal organ involved in the production and removal of blood cells in most vertebrates and forming part of the immune system.Glass particles were found in the pulmonary capillaries, livers, kidneys, spleens, and intestinal walls of animals studied....
- These lesions have been reported in the brain, 3 lymph nodes, 4 spleens, 5 lungs, 6 and several other sites.
- The lateral approach provides an excellent view of the splenic vessels, pancreas, and accessory spleens.
2 [mass noun] Bad temper; spite: he could vent his spleen on the institutions which had duped him...
- No sisterhood here: both Anna and Claire vent their spleen upon her with hilariously withering spite.
- Every now and again - usually these days in grand slam finals - they get the chance to vent their spleen and lay into each other in public.
- So blogging will be light for the next two weeks or so, until I find a new equilibrium, or a compelling reason to vent my spleen.
Synonyms
bad temper, bad mood, ill temper, ill humour, annoyance, anger, wrath, vexation, crossness, irritation, displeasure, dissatisfaction, irritability, irascibility, cantankerousness, peevishness, petulance, pettishness, pique, querulousness, crabbiness, testiness, tetchiness, snappishness, waspishness, touchiness, moodiness, sullenness, resentment, rancour, biliousness, sourness;
spite, spitefulness, ill feeling, malice, maliciousness, bitterness, animosity, antipathy, hostility, malevolence, venom, gall, malignance, malignity, acrimony, bile, hatred, hate
literary ire, choler
Derivatives
spleenful
- The spiteful, mean and spleenful invections of the gutter press always amuse me.
- I didn't want to be so spleenful and bileful and moaning and groaning and complaining and whining about the misfortunes of the past.
- Then came a spleenful Soglin, who attacked the municipal revenue-sharing policies of the stunned Governor…
Origin
Middle English: shortening of Old French esplen, via Latin from Greek splēn; sense 2 derives from the earlier belief that the spleen was the seat of bad temper.