quincuncial or quin·cun·xial [kwin-kuhn-shuh l, kwing-] ExamplesWord Origin adjective
- consisting of, arranged, or formed like a quincunx or quincunxes.
- Botany. noting a five-ranked arrangement of leaves.
Origin of quincuncial 1595–1605; Latin quīncunciālis, equivalent to quīncunci- (stem of quīncunx quincunx) + -ālis -al1 Related formsquin·cun·cial·ly, adverb Examples from the Web for quincuncial Historical Examples of quincuncial
Pores subregular, circular, gradually increasing in size, disposed in six to nine quincuncial alternating longitudinal rows.
Ernst Haeckel
Quincuncial forms and ordinations are also observable in animal figurations.
The Works of Sir Thomas Browne
Thomas Browne
Scales on the back rounded, quincuncial, imbricate; those on the belly similar to those on the back and on the sides.
Louis Figuier
Pores regular, circular, quincuncial, twice as broad as the bars.
Ernst Haeckel
Thorax nearly hemispherical, with regular, circular, quincuncial pores.
Ernst Haeckel
British Dictionary definitions for quincuncial quincuncial adjective
- consisting of or having the appearance of a quincunx
- (of the petals or sepals of a five-membered corolla or calyx in the bud) arranged so that two members overlap another two completely and the fifth overlaps on one margin and is itself overlapped on the other
Derived Formsquincuncially, adverb