obturator
noun
Forms obturators
- noun (surgery) An object used to obstruct a hole, such as a fissure of the palate.
- noun (anatomy) The membrane vessels, etc. that close the obturator foramen, or thyroid foramen, a large opening or fenestra in the anterior part of the hip bone.
- noun (engineering) A valve closure member (disk, gate, plug, etc.).
- noun (firearms) Any device for preventing the escape of gas through the breech mechanism of a breech-loading gun; a gas check.
- noun (photography) A camera shutter.
Etymology
From Latin obtūrō (“to stop, block up”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun That which closes or stops an opening.
- noun An apparatus designed to close an unnatural opening, as a fissure of the palate.
- adjective Serving as an obturator; closing an opening; pertaining to, or in the region of, the obturator foramen; as, the obturator nerve.
Etymology [NL., fr. L. obturare to stop up: cf.F. obturateur.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “obturator”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details