Definition (NCI_NCI-GLOSS) A type of lung disease marked by permanent damage to tissues in the lungs, making it hard to breathe. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease includes chronic bronchitis, in which the bronchi (large air passages) are inflamed and scarred, and emphysema, in which the alveoli (tiny air sacs) are damaged.
Princeton's WordNet(3.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition: 1  affluent(noun) an affluent person; a person who is financially well off. the so-called emerging affluents. 2  feeder, tributary, confluent, affluent(adj) a branch that flows into the main stream.
Word Origin & History. affluent mid-15c., flowing, from L. affluentem (nom. affluens), prp. of affluere flow toward, from ad- to + fluere to flow (see fluent). Notion of a plentiful flow (of the gifts of fortune) led to affluence in the sense of wealth, first recorded c.1600.