isthmus
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An isthmus (narrow strip of land).
See also: Isthmus
English
Etymology
Borrowing from Latin isthmus (“a strip of land between two seas”), from Ancient Greek ῐ̓σθμός (isthmós, “neck, narrow passage”), possibly from εἶμῐ (eîmi, “to go”). Cognate to Old Norse eið (“isthmus”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈɪsθ.məs/, /ˈɪs.məs/, /ˈɪz.məs/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈɪs.məs/
- (obsolete) IPA(key): /ˈɪst.məs/
Audio (US) (file)
- Rhymes: -ɪsməs
Noun
isthmus (plural isthmuses or isthmi)
- A narrow strip of land, bordered on both sides by water, and connecting two larger landmasses.
- Hyponym: Isthmus of Suez
- (anatomy) Any such narrow part connecting two larger structures.
- Hyponym: uterine isthmus
- (graph theory) An edge in a graph whose deletion increases the number of connected components of the graph.
Derived terms
Translations
strip of land
|
part connecting two anatomical structures
edge in a graph
References
- Jespersen, Otto (1909) A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles (Sammlung germanischer Elementar- und Handbücher; 9), volumes I: Sounds and Spellings, London: George Allen & Unwin, published 1961, § 7.736, page 225.
- “isthmus”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “isthmus”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
Latin
Alternative forms
- isthmos (unadapted)
Etymology
Borrowing from Ancient Greek ῐ̓σθμός (isthmós, “neck, narrow passage”), possibly from εἶμῐ (eîmi, “to go”).
Pronunciation
Noun
isthmus m (genitive isthmī); second declension
Usage notes
- Capitalised as Isthmus, it refers to the Isthmus of Corinth.
Inflection
Second-declension noun.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | isthmus | isthmī |
| Genitive | isthmī | isthmōrum |
| Dative | isthmō | isthmīs |
| Accusative | isthmum | isthmōs |
| Ablative | isthmō | isthmīs |
| Vocative | isthme | isthmī |
Derived terms
Descendants
Descendants of isthmus in other languages
References
- “Isthmus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Further reading
- isthmus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.