US Medical Term · anatomy
Liver
Hígado
In 9 languages
| Language | Term |
|---|---|
| English | Liver |
| Spanish (Español) | Hígado |
| Chinese (中文) | 肝臟 |
| Korean (한국어) | 간 |
| Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt) | Gan |
| Filipino (Tagalog) | Atay |
| Portuguese (Português) | Fígado |
| Thai (ภาษาไทย) | ตับ |
| Japanese (日本語) | 肝臓 |
What it means
The liver is the largest internal organ, weighing about three pounds and sitting in the upper right part of the abdomen under the rib cage. It performs more than 500 functions essential to life. It filters the blood coming from the digestive tract, removing toxins, drugs, and waste products. It produces bile to help digest fats, manufactures most of the proteins in the blood including those that help it clot, and stores glucose as glycogen to regulate blood sugar. The liver also processes medications, which is why drug dosing can be affected by liver disease. Common liver conditions include hepatitis — inflammation of the liver — cirrhosis — scarring from long-term damage — and fatty liver disease.
How to say it
Sentences a patient might use with a doctor, nurse, pharmacist, or insurer:
My blood tests show my liver enzymes are elevated — what does that mean?
Mis análisis de sangre muestran que las enzimas del hígado están elevadas. ¿Qué significa eso?
I was told I have fatty liver disease and need to change my diet and lose weight.
Me dijeron que tengo hígado graso y necesito cambiar mi dieta y perder peso.
My hepatitis C has caused scarring in my liver, and the doctor called it early cirrhosis.
Mi hepatitis C ha causado cicatrices en el hígado, y el médico lo llamó cirrosis temprana.
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Sources
Last reviewed: September 2026