dor·sal

(dôr′səl)

adj.

1. Anatomy Of, toward, on, in, or near the back or upper surface of an organ, part, or organism.

2. Botany Of or on the surface of an organ or part facing away from the axis; abaxial.

[Middle English, from Medieval Latin dorsālis, from Latin dorsuālis, from dorsum, back.]

dor′sal·ly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

dorsal

(ˈdɔːsəl)

adj

1. (Anatomy) anatomy zoology relating to the back or spinal part of the body. Compare ventral¹

2. (Botany) botany of, relating to, or situated on the side of an organ that is directed away from the axis

3. (Phonetics & Phonology) articulated with the back of the tongue, as the (k) sound in English coot

[C15: from Medieval Latin dorsālis, from Latin dorsum back]

ˈdorsally adv

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

dor•sal

(ˈdɔr səl)

adj.

1. of, pertaining to, or situated at the back, or dorsum.

2. situated on or toward the upper side of the body, equivalent to the back in humans.

3. Bot. abaxial.

4. a dorsal structure.

[1535–45; < Medieval Latin dorsālis < Latin dors(um) back]

dor′sal•ly, adv.

dor·sal

(dôr′səl)

Of or on the back or upper surface of an animal: the dorsal fin of a fish.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

dorsal

Relating to the back. Compare ventral

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Adj.	1.	dorsal - belonging to or on or near the back or upper surface of an animal or organ or part; "the dorsal fin is the vertical fin on the back of a fish and certain marine mammals" ventral - toward or on or near the belly (front of a primate or lower surface of a lower animal); "the ventral aspect of the human body"; "the liver is somewhat ventral in position"; "ventral (or pelvic) fins correspond to the hind limbs of a quadruped"
	2.	dorsal - facing away from the axis of an organ or organism; "the abaxial surface of a leaf is the underside or side facing away from the stem" abaxial biological science, biology - the science that studies living organisms

Translations

ظَهْري

hřbetní

dorsal Rücken-...

dorsal

háti

bak-, baklægur

dorsale

nugarõs

muguras-

sırtla ilgili

背面的

dorsal

[ˈdɔːsl]

A. ADJ → dorsal

B. CPD dorsal fin N → aleta f dorsal

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

dorsal

[ˈdɔː^rs^əl] adj [fin] → dorsal(e)

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

dorsal

adj → Rücken-, dorsal (spec)

n (Phon) → Dorsal(laut) m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

dorsal

[ˈdɔːsl] adj → dorsale
dorsal fin → pinna dorsale

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

dorsal

(ˈdoːsəl) adjective

of the back. a shark's dorsal fin.

dorsal

adj dorsal

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

That evening he was within a feather-weight's turn of abandoning his road to the nearest station, and driving across that elevated dorsal line of South Wessex which divided him from his Tess's home.

View in context

While crossing, I saw numerous whales belonging to the three kinds peculiar to the southern seas; the whale, or the English "right whale," which has no dorsal fin; the "humpback," with reeved chest and large, whitish fins, which, in spite of its name, do not form wings; and the fin-back, of a yellowish brown, the liveliest of all the cetacea.

View in context

Nor did he see the dorsal fin break surface and approach him from the rear.

View in context

Great slate-colored backs and high serrated dorsal fins shot up with a fringe of silver, and then rolled down into the depths again.

View in context

But it is conceivable that the now utterly lost branchiae might have been gradually worked in by natural selection for some quite distinct purpose: in the same manner as, on the view entertained by some naturalists that the branchiae and dorsal scales of Annelids are homologous with the wings and wing-covers of insects, it is probable that organs which at a very ancient period served for respiration have been actually converted into organs of flight.

View in context

He has a peculiar way of showing his dorsal hooked fin in swimming, which looks something like a Roman nose.

View in context

Newman did not hear his voice, but perceived that he presented the dorsal expression of a well-dressed Englishman.

View in context

Kidd could see the finger of the dial stand up dark against the sky like the dorsal fin of a shark and the vain moonlight clinging to that idle clock.

View in context

On each side of the lower surface, or foot, there is a broad membrane, which appears sometimes to act as a ventilator, in causing a current of water to flow over the dorsal branchiae or lungs.

View in context

Dorsal surface convex longitudinally, almost smooth, with few disconnected, fine transverse ridges on protogastric region; pair of mats of minute setae between rostrum and protogastric ridges; cervical grooves faint; metabranchial and adjacent regions with distinct long transverse ridges; two rounded, shallow depressions laterally in cardiac region.

First record of Polyonyx loimicola Sankolli, 1965 (Crustacea, Decapoda, Anomura, Porcellanidae) from the Red Sea, Egypt

A black, 7.0 x 8.0-cm eschar, consisting of the epidermis, dermis, periosteum, and compact cranial bone, was observed on the dorsal head and underlying tissue (Fig 1).

Successful, Full-Thickness Skin Graft in a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

T1 petiolate: in dorsal view with width half or less that of T2 and at least twice as long as wide (Fig.

Claves taxonomicas para las especies de avispas eusociales de Costa Rica (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Polistinae)