Vessel
(French
vaissel,
from
a
rare
Latin
vascellum,
diminuitive
of
vas,
vase,
or
urn),
a
word
of
somewhat
wide
application
for
many
objects,
the
meaning
common
to
them
being
capacity
to
hold
or
contain
something.
Thus
it
is
a
general
term
for
any
utensil
capable
of
containing
liquids,
and
for
those
tubular
structures
in
anatomy,
such
as
the
arteries,
veins
or
lymphatics,
which
contain,
secrete
or
circulate
the
blood
or
lymph.
Organs
or
structures
which
are
largely
supplied
with
vessels
are
said
to
be
vascular
(Latin
vasculum,
another
diminutive
of
vas).
Vessel
(as
in
French)
is
also
a
general
term
for
all
craft
capable
of
floating
on
water
larger
than
a
rowing
boat,
such
as
ships.
The
word
is
also
familiar
in
Biblical
phraseology
in
the
figurative
sense
of
a
person
regarded
as
the
recipient
of
some
Divine
dispensation,
a
chosen
vessel,
or
as
one
into
which
something
is
infused
or
poured,
vessel
of
wrath.
A
pressure
vessel
is
a
vessel
that
is
subject
to
either
internal
or
external
pressure.
This
definition
generally
includes
air
receivers,
heat
exchangers,
evaporators,
steam
type
sterilisers
and
autoclaves.