varix

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noun

A varicose, i.e. swollen and knotted, vein.

OriginMiddle English varix ← Latin varix ← Proto-Indo-European *wers- →
Scrabble 15
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Meanings

nounvarix (plural varices)

plural varices

  1. medicineA varicose, i.e. swollen and knotted, vein.
  2. biologyIn mollusks, a particular ridge on the shell, corresponding to a former position of the aperture.

    In the personid genus Distorsio, varix formation is accompanied by a reorientation of the aperture.

    1995, Geerat J. Vermeij, A Natural History of Shells, page 31

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*wers-
  2. Latinvarix
  3. Middle Englishvarix
  4. Englishvarix

Via Middle English varix from Latin varix, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wers-. See also Old Church Slavonic врьхъ (vrĭxŭ, “top, peak”), Ancient Greek ἕρμα (hérma, “reef, rock, hill”), Lithuanian viršus (“top”).

More words from Middle English, Latin, Proto-Indo-European

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Translations

Bulgarian разширена вена
  • разширена вена (razširena vena)varicose vein
German Krampfader
  • Krampfadervaricose vein
Icelandic æðahnútur
  • æðahnúturvaricose vein
Italian vena varicosa, varice
  • vena varicosavaricose vein
  • varicevaricose vein
Latin varix
  • varixvaricose vein

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

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Cite this entry
APA

varix. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/varix

MLA

“varix.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/varix. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “varix,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/varix.

Source: varix on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.