venæ

Venæ is the classical Latin spelling for the plural of vena, the word for vein. The same form venæ also appears as the genitive singular of vena, meaning “of the vein,” and is encountered in Latin phrases in medical and anatomical texts. In modern typography the ligature æ is often rendered as ae, producing venæ or venae. The term thus appears in Latin descriptions of vascular structures, both as a plural noun for multiple veins and as a genitive noun, depending on context.

In anatomy, venæ is most familiar in the bound form venæ cavae, referring to the two main veins that return blood to the heart: the superior vena cava and the inferior vena cava. More generally, venæ denotes veins in compound Latin terms such as vena portae (portal vein) or venæ pulmonales (pulmonary veins). The grammatical form (nominative plural venæ vs. genitive singular venæ) determines the exact meaning within a given phrase.

Outside medicine, venæ can appear in botanical Latin to describe leaf veins and other vascular structures, though its use is less common in modern botany. In contemporary English-language writing, venæ or venae persists mainly in quotations and in the Latinized portions of anatomical terms, where it functions as part of a broader Latin nomenclatural tradition rather than as a separate English term.