atrium

/ˈeɪtriəm/

/ˈeɪtriəm/

Other forms: atria; atriums

If you're in the atrium of a building, you're in a large central space, often one that's open and airy. You might arrange to meet a friend in the museum's atrium because of its central location and open feel.

Often a key feature in a modern building, an atrium is usually spacious and several stories high with windows facing the sky. The atrium serves as a welcoming central area, with other rooms leading off of the space. An atrium can also refer to a chamber that's linked to other chambers or spaces. In your heart, the right atrium receives deoxygenated blood, while the left atrium receives oxygenated blood from the pulmonary vein.

Definitions of atrium

1. noun

   any chamber that is connected to other chambers or passageways (especially one of the two upper chambers of the heart)
   types:

   atrium cordis, atrium of the heart

   the upper chamber of each half of the heart

   atrium dextrum, right atrium, right atrium of the heart

   the right upper chamber of the heart that receives blood from the venae cavae and coronary sinus

   atrium sinistrum, left atrium, left atrium of the heart

   the left upper chamber of the heart that receives blood from the pulmonary veins

   type of:

   chamber

   an enclosed volume in the body
2. noun

   the central area in a building; open to the sky
   type of:

   court, courtyard

   an area wholly or partly surrounded by walls or buildings