eccrine

[ ek-rin, -rahyn, -reen ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

, Physiology.

of or relating to certain sweat glands, distributed over the entire body, that secrete a type of sweat important for regulating body heat ( apocrine ).
of or relating to secretions of these glands:
eccrine sweat.
exocrine ( def ).

eccrine

/ ˈɛkrɪn /

of or denoting glands that secrete externally, esp the numerous sweat glands on the human body Compare apocrine

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Origin of eccrine¹

First recorded in 1925–30; from Greek ekkrī́nein “to secrete,” formed as if with -ine ¹( def ); eccrinology ( def ), endocrine ( def )

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Origin of eccrine¹

from Greek ekkrinein to secrete, from ek- ec- + krinein to separate

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How does eccrine compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Most of us have between 2 and 5 million of eccrine sweat glands sprinkled across our whole body, including the armpit.

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