rachis
/ˈɹeɪkɪs/ noun
Forms rachises rachides rhachis
- noun (obsolete, zoology, anatomy) The spinal column, or the vertebrae of the spine.
- noun (zoology) An anatomical shaft or axis in a marine invertebrate.
- noun (ornithology) The central shaft of a feather.
- noun (botany) The axis of either a compound leaf, inflorescence, or fern frond.
Synonyms
Etymology
From New Latin rhachis/rachis, from Ancient Greek ῥάχις (rhákhis, “spine, ridge”).
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [NL., fr. Gr. [Written also rhachis.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “rachis”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details