Advertisement
Advertisement
cephalic
1[ suh-fal-ik ]
adjective
- of or relating to the head.
- situated or directed toward the head.
-cephalic
2- variant of -cephalous:
brachycephalic.
cephalic
1/ sɪˈfælɪk /
adjective
- of or relating to the head
- situated in, on, or near the head
-cephalic
2combining form
- indicating skull or head; -headed
brachycephalic
cephalic
/ sə-făl′ĭk /
- Located on or near the head.
Discover More
Derived Forms
- -cephaly, combining_form:in_noun:countable
Discover More
Other Words From
- ce·phali·cal·ly adverb
- postce·phalic adjective
- proce·phalic adjective
- unce·phalic adjective
Discover More
Word History and Origins
Origin of cephalic2
Discover More
Word History and Origins
Origin of cephalic1
Discover More
Example Sentences
During the Bronze Age the cephalic index rises all over middle and western Europe.
Between the cephalic enlargements and the tail-swellings is situated the rudimentary trunk of the embryo.
E appears to be a little abnormal in not having the cephalic region so distinctly marked off from the trunk as is usual.
The amnion forms a small fold covering over the cephalic extremity of the embryo, which is deeply embedded in the yolk.
By the close of this stage the full number of post-cephalic segments has become established.
Advertisement
Discover More
Words That Use -cephalic
What does -cephalic mean?
The combining form -cephalic is used like a suffix meaning “having a head or heads.” It is often used in medical and scientific terms.
The form -cephalic comes from the Greek kephalḗ, meaning “head.”
The combining form -cephalic is a variant of -cephalous, as in dicephalous.
Want to know more? Read our Words That Use -cephalous article.
Corresponding forms of -cephalic combined to the beginning of words are cephalo- and cephal-, which you can learn more about in our Words That Use articles for each form.
Also deriving from kephalḗ are the combining forms encephalo- and encephal-, meaning “brain.” Discover how these forms are used in our Words That Use encephalo- and encephal- articles.
Examples of -cephalic
One example of a botany term that uses -cephalic is monocephalic, meaning “bearing one flower head,” like a dandelion or domesticated sunflower.
The first part of monocephalic might look familiar to you. Mono– means “one, single, alone.” The second part of the word, -cephalic, means “having a head,” as we’ve seen. So, monocephalic literally translates to “having a single head.”
What are some words that use the combining form –cephalic?
Break it down!
The term isocephalic is a term sometimes used in fine arts to describe figures which have a body part that are all composed at approximately the same level (iso– means “equal”). Which body part does isocephalic refer to?
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Browse