yellow bile
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: * Yellow bile: One of the four bodily humors in ancient and medieval physiology, believed to be secreted by the liver and responsible for traits of anger, irritability, and a choleric temperament.
Usage
- Yellow bile is a historical medical and philosophical concept, not a term used in modern medicine. It is primarily encountered in discussions of historical texts, the history of medicine, or classical theories of personality.
- It is often used in conjunction with the other three humors: blood, phlegm, and black bile.
Examples
- According to the doctrine of the four humors, an excess of yellow bile was thought to cause a person to be quick-tempered and ambitious.
- The ancient physician Galen attributed fevers and inflammatory diseases to an imbalance involving yellow bile.
- In literature, a character described as being full of yellow bile is likely to be portrayed as irascible or jealous.
Advanced Usage
- Choler: This is a direct synonym for yellow bile and is the root of the adjective "choleric."
- Humoral theory: The overarching system of medicine in which yellow bile played a key role.
- The diagnosis was based entirely on the principles of humoral theory, focusing on the balance of blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile.
Variants and Related Words
- Choler (n): A synonym for yellow bile.
- Choleric (adj): Describing a personality type associated with an excess of yellow bile; easily angered, hot-tempered.
- He has a choleric disposition.
- Bilious (adj): Originally meaning "affected by or associated with an excess of bile (yellow bile)," now often used to describe someone who is irritable or bad-tempered.
- She was feeling bilious after the argument.
Synonyms
- Choler
Related Concepts and Phrases
- The four humors: The collective term for blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile.
- Humoral imbalance: The supposed cause of disease in ancient medicine, often involving an excess or deficiency of yellow bile.
- Sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic, choleric: The four temperament types corresponding to the dominance of blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile, respectively.
Noun
- a humor that was once believed to be secreted by the liver and to cause irritability and anger