saliva

[suh-lahy-vuh] /səˈlaɪ və/
noun
1.
a viscid, watery fluid, secreted into the mouth by the salivary glands, that functions in the tasting, chewing, and swallowing of food, moistens the mouth, and starts the digestion of starches.
Origin
1670-80; < Latin salīva
Related forms
salivary
[sal-uh-ver-ee] /ˈsæl əˌvɛr i/ (Show IPA), adjective
Examples from the web for saliva
  • For some people, the inability to produce the proper amount of saliva is simply a nuisance.
  • The saliva on a smoked cigarette or the perspiration on a baseball cap may be enough.
  • But the animal's saliva may one day give some stroke sufferers a better chance of survival.
  • Then a technician draws some blood, gathers a saliva sample, and takes a punch of skin.
  • Some shrews and other insectivores have toxic saliva.
  • The more saliva she pours down one tube in her proboscis, the faster she can suck up blood through another.
  • For three days participants swabbed their mouths to collect cortisol-containing saliva.
  • The giant anteater can cover its tongue with a sticky saliva to help it get ants.
  • Their saliva contains anti-bacterial chemicals which maintain sterility in the site.
  • Chewing on anything at all can help since it stimulates saliva production.
British Dictionary definitions for saliva

saliva

/səˈlaɪvə/
noun
1.
the secretion of salivary glands, consisting of a clear usually slightly acid aqueous fluid of variable composition. It moistens the oral cavity, prepares food for swallowing, and initiates the process of digestion related adjective sialoid
Derived Forms
salivary (səˈlaɪvərɪ; ˈsælɪvərɪ) adjective
Word Origin
C17: from Latin, of obscure origin
Word Origin and History for saliva
n.

early 15c., from Middle French salive, from Latin saliva "spittle," of unknown origin (perhaps, as Tucker suggests, somehow derived from the base of sallow (adj.)).

saliva in Medicine

saliva sa·li·va (sə-lī'və)
n.
The watery mixture of secretions from the salivary and oral mucous glands that lubricates chewed food, moistens the oral walls, and contains ptyalin.

saliva in Science
saliva
  (sə-lī'və)   
The watery fluid that is secreted into the mouth by the salivary glands. In many animals, including humans, it contains the enzyme amylase, which breaks down carbohydrates. Saliva also contains mucus, which lubricates food for swallowing, and various proteins and mineral salts. Some special chemicals occur in the saliva of other animals, such as anticoagulants in the saliva of mosquitoes.
saliva in Culture
saliva [(suh-leye-vuh)]

The fluid produced by the secretions of the salivary glands. Saliva contains enzymes that begin the digestion of starches. It also moistens the mouth tissues and makes food easier to chew and swallow.