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patagia

 - 2 dictionary results

pa⋅ta⋅gi⋅um

  [puh-tey-jee-uhm]
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–noun, plural -gi⋅a  [-jee-uh] .
1. a wing membrane, as of a bat.
2. the extensible fold of skin of certain insects or of a gliding mammal or reptile, as a flying squirrel.
3. either of two small processes on the anterior thorax, found esp. among butterflies and moths.
Origin:
1820–30; < NL, special use of L patagium tunic border
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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pa·ta·gi·um   (pə-tā'jē-əm)   
n.   pl. pa·ta·gi·a (-jē-ə)

  1. A thin membrane extending between the body and a limb to form a wing or winglike extension, as in bats and flying squirrels.

  2. An expandable membranous fold of skin between the wing and body of a bird.


[Latin patagium, gold edging on a woman's tunic, perhaps from Greek *patageion, from patagos, clatter, of imitative origin .]
pa·ta'gi·al (-jē-əl) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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