phlegm

English

Etymology

From Old French fleume, Middle French flemme (French flegme), and their source, Latin phlegma, from Ancient Greek φλέγμα ‎(phlégma, “flame; inflammation; clammy humor in the body”), from φλέγειν ‎(phlégein, “to burn”). Compare phlox, flagrant, flame, bleak ‎(adjective), fulminate.

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /flɛm/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛm

Noun

phlegm ‎(usually uncountable, plural phlegms)

1. (historical) One of the four humors making up the body in ancient and mediaeval medicine; said to be cold and moist, and often identified with mucus. [from 13th c.]
   • 1993, William Dalrymple, City of Djinns, HarperCollins 1993:

     Each person's unique mixture of these substances determines his temperament: a predominance of blood gives a sanguine temperament; a predominance of phlegm makes one phlegmatic; yellow bile, bilious (or choleric); and black bile, melancholic.

2. Viscid mucus produced by the body, later especially mucus expelled from the bronchial passages by coughing. [from 14th c.]
   • 2005, "Endangered Species?" Hannah Beech, Time, 14 Nov 2005:

     "Even some members of the new bourgeoisie indulge in conspicuously boorish behavior, like hawking phlegm onto the pavement or picking their noses at business meetings."

3. (historical, chemistry, alchemy) A watery distillation, especially one obtained from plant matter; an aqueous solution. [from 16th c.]
4. Calmness of temperament, composure; also seen negatively, sluggishness, indifference. [from 16th c.]
   • 1942, "Warning to Sweden", Time, 5 Oct 1942:

     But Swedish Nazis also talked of the necessity of saving Sweden from Bolshevism, and with the menacing Berlin radio gnawing in their ears many Swedes lost their Scandinavian phlegm.

Related terms

• phlegmatic
• phlegmy

Translations

historical: humour

• Catalan: flegma f
• French: flegme (fr) m, pituite (fr) f

• Portuguese: fleuma (pt) m f, flegma (pt) f

mucus secreted in the bronchial passages

• Arabic: بَلْغَم m ‎(balḡam)

  Egyptian Arabic: بلغم m ‎(balğam)

• Armenian: խորխ (hy) ‎(xorx)
• Bulgarian: please add this translation if you can
• Catalan: flegma f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 痰 (zh) ‎(tán)

• Czech: hlen (cs) m, sopel (cs) m
• Finnish: lima (fi)
• French: glaire (fr) f
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: Schleim (de) m, Nasenschleim (de) m, Popel (de) m
• Icelandic: öndunarfæraslím n, kvefslím n
• Irish: réama m

• Japanese: 痰 (ja) ‎(tan)
• Kapampangan: badlo
• Kikuyu: kohozi, makorora
• Malay: kahak
• Maori: wharo, wharowharo, mare (mi), maermare
• Navajo: chátłʼish
• Portuguese: catarro (pt) m
• Romanian: please add this translation if you can
• Russian: мокро́та (ru) f ‎(mokróta)
• Spanish: flema (es) f
• Swahili: kohozi (sw)
• Swedish: slem (sv) n
• Tagalog: kalaghala, kanaghala, kanighala, plema
• Tamil: சளி (ta) ‎(caḷi)
• Turkish: please add this translation if you can

calmness, composure

• Catalan: flegma f
• Finnish: tyyneys, flegma
• French: flegme (fr) m
• German: Gemütsruhe f, Gleichmut (de) m, Trägheit (de) f, Schwerfälligkeit f, stoische Ruhe f

• Greek: φλέγμα (el) n ‎(flégma)
• Icelandic: rólyndi n, deyfð (is) f
• Japanese: 冷静さ ‎(reiseisa)
• Portuguese: fleuma (pt) m f

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Georgian: ^{(please verify)} ლორწო ‎(lorc̣o), ^{(please verify)} ნახველი ‎(naxveli), ^{(please verify)} სისველე ‎(sisvele), ^{(please verify)} ფლეგმა ‎(plegma)
• Hebrew: ליחה f

• Italian: espettorato (it) m
• Polish: orosienie n

References

• “phlegm” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary (2001).
• “phlegm” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, v1.0.1, Lexico Publishing Group, 2006.