organ

n. [ L. organum, Gr. 'o`rganon; akin to 'e`rgon work, and E. work: cf. F. organe. See Work, and cf. Orgue, Orgy. ] 1. An instrument or medium by which some important action is performed, or an important end accomplished; as, legislatures, courts, armies, taxgatherers, etc., are organs of government. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Biol.) A natural part or structure in an animal or a plant, capable of performing some special action (termed its function), which is essential to the life or well-being of the whole; as, the heart, lungs, etc., are organs of animals; the root, stem, foliage, etc., are organs of plants. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In animals the organs are generally made up of several tissues, one of which usually predominates, and determines the principal function of the organ. Groups of organs constitute a system. See System. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A component part performing an essential office in the working of any complex machine; as, the cylinder, valves, crank, etc., are organs of the steam engine. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A medium of communication between one person or body and another; as, the secretary of state is the organ of communication between the government and a foreign power; a newspaper is the organ of its editor, or of a party, sect, etc. A newsletter distributed within an organization is often called its house organ. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

5. [ Cf. AS. organ, fr. L. organum. ] (Mus.) A wind instrument containing numerous pipes of various dimensions and kinds, which are filled with wind from a bellows, and played upon by means of keys similar to those of a piano, and sometimes by foot keys or pedals; -- formerly used in the plural, each pipe being considered an organ. [ 1913 Webster ]

The deep, majestic, solemn organs blow. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Chaucer used the form orgon as a plural. [ 1913 Webster ] The merry orgon . . . that in the church goon [ go ]. [ 1913 Webster ]

Barrel organ,
Choir organ,
Great organ, etc. See under Barrel, Choir, etc. --
Cabinet organ (Mus.), an organ of small size, as for a chapel or for domestic use; a reed organ. --
Organ bird (Zool.), a Tasmanian crow shrike (Gymnorhina organicum). It utters discordant notes like those of a hand organ out of tune. --
Organ fish (Zool.), the drumfish. --
Organ gun. (Mil.) Same as Orgue (b). --
Organ harmonium (Mus.), an harmonium of large capacity and power. --
Organ of Corti (Anat.), a complicated structure in the cochlea of the ear, including the auditory hair cells, the rods or fibers of Corti, the membrane of Corti, etc. See Note under Ear. --
Organ pipe. See Pipe, n., 1. --
Organ-pipe coral. (Zool.) See Tubipora. --
Organ point (Mus.), a passage in which the tonic or dominant is sustained continuously by one part, while the other parts move. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ F. organdi. ] A kind of transparent light but stiff muslin. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Biol.) a specialized part of a cell performing a specific function, usually visible under the microscope as a distinct object; it is analogous to an organ{ 2 }, but on a microscopic scale.
Syn. -- cell organ. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. [ L. organicus, Gr. 'organiko`s: cf. F. organique. ] 1. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to an organ or its functions, or to objects composed of organs; consisting of organs, or containing them; as, the organic structure of animals and plants; exhibiting characters peculiar to living organisms; as, organic bodies, organic life, organic remains. Cf. Inorganic. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Produced by the organs; as, organic pleasure. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Instrumental; acting as instruments of nature or of art to a certain destined function or end. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Those organic arts which enable men to discourse and write perspicuously. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Forming a whole composed of organs. Hence: Of or pertaining to a system of organs; inherent in, or resulting from, a certain organization; as, an organic government; his love of truth was not inculcated, but organic. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Chem.) Of or pertaining to compounds which are derivatives of hydrocarbons; pertaining to, or denoting, any one of a large series of carbon-containing compounds which are related to the carbon compounds produced by biological processes (such as methane, oils, fats, sugars, alcohols, ethers, proteins, etc.) and include many substances of artificial production which may or may not occur in animals or plants; -- contrasted with inorganic. Borderline cases exist which may be classified as either organic or inorganic, such as carbon terachloride (which may be viewed as a derivative of methane), but in general a compound must have a carbon with a hydrogen atom or another carbon atom attached to it to be viewed as truly organic, i.e. included in the subject matter of organic chemistry. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

☞ The principles of organic and inorganic chemistry are identical; but the enormous number and the completeness of related series of organic compounds, together with their remarkable facility of exchange and substitution, offer an illustration of chemical reaction and homology not to be paralleled in inorganic chemistry. [ 1913 Webster ]

Organic analysis (Chem.), the analysis of organic compounds, concerned chiefly with the determination of carbon as carbon dioxide, hydrogen as water, oxygen as the difference between the sum of the others and 100 per cent, and nitrogen as free nitrogen, ammonia, or nitric oxide; -- formerly called ultimate analysis, in distinction from proximate analysis. --
Organic chemistry. See under Chemistry. --
Organic compounds. (Chem.) Chemical substances which are organic{ 5 }. See Carbon compounds, under Carbon. --
Organic description of a curve (Geom.), the description of a curve on a plane by means of instruments. Brande & C. --
Organic disease (Med.), a disease attended with morbid changes in the structure of the organs of the body or in the composition of its fluids; -- opposed to functional disease. --
Organic electricity. See under Electricity. --
Organic law or
Organic laws, a law or system of laws, or declaration of principles fundamental to the existence and organization of a political or other association; a constitution. --
Organic stricture (Med.), a contraction of one of the natural passages of the body produced by structural changes in its walls, as distinguished from a spasmodic stricture, which is due to muscular contraction. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Organic. [ 1913 Webster ]

The organical structure of human bodies, whereby they live and move. Bentley. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In an organic manner; by means of organs or with reference to organic functions; hence, fundamentally. Gladstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality or state of being organic. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Med.) The doctrine of the localization of disease, or which refers it always to a material lesion of an organ. Dunglison. [ 1913 Webster ]