variant of dossal
: an ornamental cloth hung behind and above an altar
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dorsal was our Word of the Day on 10/04/2010. Hear the podcast!
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Recent Examples of dorsal from the Web
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For king salmon, a notch is made in their adipose fin, the small fin on their backs between their large, dorsal fin and their tail.
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For king salmon, a notch is made in their adipose fin, the small fin on their backs between their large, dorsal fin and their tail.
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Every white cap is a head sticking out of the water, every piece of flotsam is a dorsal fin.
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Late at night, the ids of his callers and guests flash like dorsal fins.
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Also called suckerfish, their strong grip comes from an adhesive disk made from a modified dorsal fin on the fish’s head.
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The hook goes through the bridge of the nose, or in just behind the dorsal fin.
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In rats, for example, females typically have less-dense receptors in the dorsal hippocampus, which is involved in memory, than do males.
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A dorsal fin would have looked less out of place in the photo than a vehicle.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dorsal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Definition of dorsal
1
: relating to or situated near or on the back especially of an animal or of one of its parts
2
: abaxial
Recent Examples of dorsal from the Web
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Arctic grayling males are more colorful than their female counterparts and sport a much longer dorsal fin.
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To add support for the dual origin hypothesis, Dr. Linz said, evolution would have had to fuse a structure on the dorsal region of the segment and one from the pleural tissue.
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Conversely, Willamette chinook may be longer and a bit leaner, with less dorsal brilliance.
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Three brain areas work together to stop body movement: the dorsal part of the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (red), the ventral part of the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (blue) and the bilateral frontal eye fields (green).
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dorsal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of dorsal
Late Latin dorsalis, from Latin dorsum back
NEW! Time Traveler
First Known Use: 1727
in the meaning defined at sense 1
See Words from the same yearOther Anatomy Terms
First Known Use of dorsal
1834
Other Anatomy Terms
DORSAL Defined for Kids
Definition of dorsal for Students
: relating to or being on or near the surface of the body that in humans is the back but in most animals is the upper surface
- a fish's dorsal fin
Medical Dictionary
medical Definition of dorsal
1 a
: being or located near, on, or toward the upper surface of an animal (as a quadruped) opposite the lower or ventral surface
b
: being or located near, on, or toward the back or posterior part of the human body
Learn More about dorsal
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See words that rhyme with dorsal Spanish Central: Translation of dorsal Nglish: Translation of dorsal for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of dorsal for Arabic speakers
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