HEMORRHOID

[hem.or.rhoid] n [ME emeroides, pl., fr. MF hemorrhoides, fr. L haemorrhoidae, fr. Gk haimorrhoides, fr. haimorrhoos flowing with blood, fr. haimo- hem- + rhein to flow--more at stream] (14c): a mass of dilated veins in swollen tissue at the margin of the anus or nearby within the rectum--usu. used in pl.--called also piles