dorsal

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English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Late Middle English dorsal/dorsale, borrowing from Medieval Latin dorsālis (of or relating to the back), from dorsum (the back) +‎ -ālis (-al, adjectival suffix); equivalent to dorsum +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

Adjective

dorsal (comparative more dorsal, superlative most dorsal)

  1. (anatomy, zootomy) With respect to, or concerning the side in which the backbone is located, or the analogous side of an invertebrate.
    1. (anatomy) Relating to the top surface of the foot or hand.
    2. (linguistics, of a sound) Produced using the dorsum of the tongue.
      Coordinate terms: coronal, labial, laryngeal, radical
  2. (of a knife) Having only one sharp side.
  3. (botany) Relating to the surface naturally inferior, as of a leaf.
  4. (botany) Relating to the surface naturally superior, as of a creeping hepatic moss.

Antonyms

Coordinate terms

Derived terms

Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Noun

Dorsal at the Church of England parish church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Weston-on-the-Green, Oxfordshire.

dorsal (plural dorsals)

  1. (art) A hanging, usually of rich stuff, at the back of a throne, altar, etc.
  2. (zootomy, in snakes) Any of the longitudinal series of plates that encircle the body, excluding the ventral scales.
  3. (linguistics) A sound produced using the dorsum of the tongue.

References

Anagrams

Catalan

Etymology

From dors +‎ -al.

Adjective

dorsal m or f (masculine and feminine plural dorsals)

  1. rear
  2. (anatomy, linguistics) dorsal

Derived terms

Noun

dorsal m (plural dorsals)

  1. backplate (of a cuirass)
  2. (zoology) shell, elytron
  3. (sports) number

Noun

dorsal f (plural dorsals)

  1. (meteorology) ridge
    Antonym: tàlveg
  2. (geomorphology) ridge (on the ocean floor)

Derived terms

Further reading

French

French Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia fr

Etymology

Inherited from Old French, from Latin dorsum with adjective-forming suffix -al.

Pronunciation

Adjective

dorsal (feminine dorsale, masculine plural dorsaux, feminine plural dorsales)

  1. dorsal

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Dutch: dorsaal

Further reading

German

Pronunciation

Adjective

dorsal (strong nominative masculine singular dorsaler, not comparable)

  1. dorsal

Declension

Interlingua

Adjective

dorsal (not comparable)

  1. dorsal

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 
 

  • Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
  • Hyphenation: dor‧sal

Adjective

dorsal m or f (plural dorsais, not comparable)

  1. (anatomy) dorsal (of the back)
  2. (anatomy) dorsal (of the top surface of a hand or foot)

Derived terms

Noun

dorsal f (plural dorsais)

  1. (geology) ridge
    Synonym: dorsal oceânica
  2. (linguistics) dorsal

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French dorsal.

Adjective

dorsal m or n (feminine singular dorsală, masculine plural dorsali, feminine and neuter plural dorsale)

  1. dorsal

Declension

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin dorsālis.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /doɾˈsal/
  • Rhymes: -al
  • Syllabification: dor‧sal

Adjective

dorsal m or f (masculine and feminine plural dorsales)

  1. (anatomy) dorsal

Derived terms

Noun

dorsal m (plural dorsales)

  1. ridge

Derived terms

Further reading