bowels

[bˈaʊəlz] /ˈbau̇(-ə)l How to pronounce bowel (audio)/ (ame, mw)

bowels — 名詞

1. the tubes inside the body that take food on from the stomach and carry waste out

1.名詞B2
釋義

腸子

胃往下消化與排出廢物的管道

the tubes inside the body that take food on from the stomach and carry waste out

例句

The doctor said Omar's bowels were swollen after the infection.

醫師說 Omar 的腸子在感染後腫起來了。

bowels + plural verb: were swollen

Rich food can upset your bowels and cause sharp stomach pain.

太油的食物可能會刺激你的腸子，讓你肚子一陣陣刺痛。

common health pattern: upset your bowels

同義詞
  • intestines

    neutral body-part word that sounds slightly more direct and anatomical

  • gut

    more informal and often broader, sometimes including the stomach area

  • digestive tract

    broader medical term that includes more than the intestines alone

文法句型

someone's bowels + plural verb

part of the bowels + singular verb

the bowels can be blocked / torn / swollen

用法筆記

Usually refers to the intestines in health or medical talk. The word is plural when the whole system is meant, but a phrase like 'part of the bowels' takes a singular verb because 'part' is the subject.

常見錯誤

❌My bowels is still sore.
✅My bowels are still sore.
💡when the whole bowels are the subject, English treats the noun as plural.

2. going to the toilet to pass solid waste, especially in medical or nursing talk

2.名詞C1
釋義

排便

醫護用語，指排出糞便

going to the toilet to pass solid waste, especially in medical or nursing talk

例句

The nurse asked whether Mr. Lee's bowels had opened since dawn.

護士問 Lee 先生從清晨起有沒有排便。

clinical question: bowels had opened

After the operation, Priya's bowels had still not moved by evening.

手術後到傍晚，Priya 仍然還沒有排便。

post-operation chart language

同義詞
  • bowel movement

    neutral patient-facing phrase for one act of passing stool

  • defecation

    more technical and common in formal medical writing

文法句型

someone's bowels open

someone's bowels move

wait for the bowels to open

用法筆記

This sense is mainly heard in hospitals, clinics, and care homes. Speakers usually ask whether the bowels have 'opened' or 'moved' rather than using the noun by itself.

常見錯誤

❌The patient had a bowel today.
✅The patient had a bowel movement today.
💡in this sense, 'bowels' usually appears in set medical phrases such as 'the bowels moved' or 'the bowels opened'.

3. a person's deep feelings of mercy, tenderness, or bravery, used in old or litera

3.名詞C2
釋義

心腸

古語指憐憫或勇氣等情感

a person's deep feelings of mercy, tenderness, or bravery, used in old or literary writing

例句

The old poem says no bowels stirred in the cruel king.

那首古詩說，殘暴的國王心中毫無一點惻隱之心。

literary phrase: no bowels stirred

Mercy filled her bowels when she saw the starving child.

當她看見那個挨餓的孩子時，心腸一下子軟了下來。

bowels = deep feelings of pity

同義詞
  • compassion

    modern everyday word for pity and kindness toward suffering

  • mercy

    focuses more on kindness shown to someone in pain or need

  • courage

    covers bravery directly, without the old figurative image

反義詞
  • cruelty

    the absence of pity or tenderness toward others

文法句型

someone's bowels stir

show bowels toward someone

bowels soften

用法筆記

This is an old figurative sense, especially in religious or literary texts. Modern English usually names the feeling directly with words such as 'compassion', 'mercy', or 'courage' instead.

4. the hidden inner areas far inside a place, building, machine, or the earth

4.名詞C1
釋義

深處

某物隱蔽而深入的內部

the hidden inner areas far inside a place, building, machine, or the earth

例句

Miners spent winter working in the bowels of the earth.

礦工整個冬天都在大地深處工作。

set phrase: the bowels of the earth

An engineer disappeared into the bowels of the ship with a torch.

一名工程師拿著手電筒走進了船體的深處。

set phrase: the bowels of the ship

同義詞
  • depths

    broader and less tied to enclosed inner spaces

  • interior

    neutral word for the inside, without the vivid hidden-image effect

  • heart

    often means the central part, not the deep hidden machinery or underside

反義詞
  • surface

    the outer part that is visible or easy to reach

  • exterior

    the outside rather than the hidden inside

文法句型

the bowels of the earth

the bowels of a ship

deep in the bowels of something

用法筆記

Nearly always appears in the phrase 'the bowels of ...'. It suggests a place that is hidden, enclosed, and far from the surface, often with a dark or mechanical feeling.

常見錯誤

❌The bowels of the city' for ordinary downtown streets.
✅Use it for hidden interior spaces such as tunnels, ships, basements, or underground areas.
💡the phrase suggests an enclosed inner depth, not just the middle of a place.