dorsal

dorsal 1[dawr-suh l] ExamplesWord Origin See more synonyms for dorsal on Thesaurus.com adjective

1. of, relating to, or situated at the back, or dorsum.
2. Anatomy, Zoology.
   1. situated on or toward the upper side of the body, equivalent to the back, or posterior, in humans.
   2. situated on or toward the posterior plane in humans or toward the upper plane in quadrupeds.

   Compare ventral(def 2).

3. Botany. pertaining to the surface away from the axis, as of a leaf; abaxial.
4. Phonetics. (of a speech sound) articulated with the dorsum of the tongue.

noun

5. Phonetics. a dorsal speech sound.
6. Anatomy. a dorsal structure.

Origin of dorsal 1 1535–45; Medieval Latin dorsālis, equivalent to Latin dors(um) back + -ālis -al1 Related formsdor·sal·ly, adverb dorsal 2[dawr-suh l] noun

1. dossal(def 1).

Related Words for dorsal behind, last, back, hind, hinder, reverse, rearward, posterior, tail, stern, following, postern, mizzen, hand, vane, appendage, pinna, stabilizer, flipper, airfoil Examples from the Web for dorsal Contemporary Examples of dorsal

The first and last lines of Lolita make my dorsal hairs quiver, as Nabokov intended.

Blake Bailey: How I Write

Noah Charney

March 20, 2013

Relatively misshapen and formless, the dorsal figure is perhaps even more expressive of physical torment.

The Shroud of Turin and Thomas de Wesselow’s ‘The Sign.’

Thomas de Wesselow

April 3, 2012

Historical Examples of dorsal

In other cases the eggs are carried in the dorsal pouches of the females.

The Truth About Woman

C. Gasquoine Hartley

He shot off with the bait and his dorsal fin stuck out of the water.

Tales of Fishes

Zane Grey

Just below the dorsal, on the background of gold, was a line of black dots.

Tales of Fishes

Zane Grey

Scutum: the second dorsal sclerite of the meso- and meta-thorax.

Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology

John. B. Smith

A dorsal view of an embryo with about fifteen pairs of somites.

Development of the Digestive Canal of the American Alligator

Albert M. Reese

British Dictionary definitions for dorsal dorsal adjective

1. anatomy zoology relating to the back or spinal part of the bodyCompare ventral (def. 1)
2. botany of, relating to, or situated on the side of an organ that is directed away from the axis
3. articulated with the back of the tongue, as the (k) sound in English coot

Derived Formsdorsally, adverbWord Origin for dorsal C15: from Medieval Latin dorsālis, from Latin dorsum back Word Origin and History for dorsal adj.

1540s, from Middle French dorsal (14c.), from Late Latin dorsalis, corresponding to Latin dorsualis “of the back,” from dorsum “back,” of uncertain origin.

dorsal in Medicine dorsal [dôr′səl] adj.

1. Of, toward, on, in, or near the back or upper surface of an organ, a part, or an organism.
2. Lying on the back; supine.

dorsal in Science dorsal [dôr′səl]

1. Relating to or on the back or upper surface of an animal.