# kidney

Pronunciation: say "KID-nee" /ˈkɪdni/

## Noun

1. An organ that filters the blood to remove waste and produce urine.
   - Simple: An organ that cleans waste from the blood and makes urine.
   - _Each kidney filters waste products from the blood around the clock._
   - _Surgeons removed the damaged kidney and replaced it with a donor organ._
2. An animal's kidney, used as food: for instance in dishes like steak and kidney pie.
   - Simple: Meat from an animal's kidney, cooked and served as food.
   - _The recipe calls for lamb kidneys simmered in red wine._
   - _He ordered grilled kidney with mustard sauce at the restaurant._

## Noun

3. A person's constitution, temperament, or type: the basic character that places them among a particular kind of people. *(dated)*
   - Simple: The basic character or type that a person belongs to.
   - _Politicians of that kidney rarely admit when they are wrong._
   - _She found him to be a man of generous kidney, always ready to help._
4. A servant or attendant who waits on guests, bringing them food and drink at the table. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A person who serves food and drinks to people at a table.
   - _The kidney hurried between the crowded tables with a tray of mugs._
   - _A young kidney took our coats and showed us to a bench by the fire._

## Origin

From Middle English kedney, of obscure origin and formation. It is probably a compound of Middle English *kid ("belly, womb," from Old English cwiþ) and nēre ("kidney," from Old English *nēora, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *neurô and Proto-Indo-European *negʷʰr-), making it related to Dutch nier, German Niere, and Ancient Greek nephrós. An alternate etymology traces the first element to Old English *cydde ("sack, belly, scrotum"), since terms for testicle and kidney were often interchangeable in Germanic.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/kidney (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).