gland
/ɡlænd/noun
gland is a noun meaning “A specialized cell, group of cells, or organ of endothelial origin in the human or animal body that synthesizes a chemical substance, such as…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is spelled G-L-A-N-D and has one syllable, and it appears 2.4 times per million words in written English (wordfreq, 2021 data). The plural of gland is glands.
What does gland mean?
noun
- 1
A specialized cell, group of cells, or organ of endothelial origin in the human or animal body that synthesizes a chemical substance, such as hormones or breast milk, and releases it, often into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland).
- 2
A structure resembling a gland, especially a lymph node.
- 3
A secretory structure on the surface of an organ.
- 4
A stuffing box used to seal a rotating or reciprocating shaft against a fluid.
The gland of a tap/faucet is usually packed with string which has been soaked in tallow or similar grease.
- 5
A compressable cylindrical case and its contents around a shaft where it passes through a barrier, intended to prevent the passage of a fluid past the barrier, used for example around a ship’s propeller shaft or around a tap, valve or faucet.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you pronounce gland?
- US /ɡlænd/
- [ɡleənd] ~ [ɡlɛənd]
- British /ɡland/
Gland has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-gland.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of gland
- glands plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How common is gland?
Gland appears 2.4 times per million words in written English, the 17,587th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Gland in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense organ that synthesizes and secretes substance:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does gland come from?
Late 17th century borrowing from French glande, alteration of Old French glandre, from Latin glandulae (“throat glands, tonsils”), plural of glandula (“a little acorn”), from glāns (“an acorn”) + -ula (diminutive nominal suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).