prehensile
Use Prehensile in a sentence
sɪl, -saɪl adjective
1.
adapted for seizing, grasping, or taking hold of something: a prehensile tail.
2.
able to perceive quickly; having keen mental grasp.
3.
greedy; grasping; avaricious.
Origin:
1781–85; < French préhensile (coined by Buffon), equivalent to Latin prehens(us) (see prehension) + French -ile -ile
1781–85; < French préhensile (coined by Buffon), equivalent to Latin prehens(us) (see prehension) + French -ile -ile
Related forms
non·pre·hen·sile, adjective
sub·pre·hen·sile, adjective
sub·pre·hen·sil·i·ty, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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|
Link To prehensile
00:10
Prehensile
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
prehensile (prɪˈhɛnsaɪl) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —adj | |
| adapted for grasping, esp by wrapping around a support: a prehensile tail | |
| [C18: from French préhensile, from Latin prehendere to grasp] | |
| prehensility | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
prehensile
1781, from Fr. préhensile (Buffon), from L. prehensus, pp. of prehendere "to grasp, to seize," from præ- "before" + -hendere, related to hedera "ivy," via notion of "clinging," and cognate with Gk. khandanein "to take in, hold" (see get).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
prehensile pre·hen·sile (prē-hěn'səl, -sīl')
adj.
Adapted for seizing, grasping, or holding, especially by wrapping around an object.
pre'hen·sil'i·ty (-sĭl'ĭ-tē) n.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
| prehensile (prē-hěn'səl) Pronunciation Key
Adapted for seizing, grasping, or holding, especially by wrapping around an object. The feet of many birds, the tails of monkeys, and the trunks of elephants are prehensile. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
It is akin, rather, to the mathematical or musical prodigy's prehensile grasp of hidden structures.
It seems to have lacked a trunk but may have had a prehensile upper lip.
The prehensile trunk of the tapir has changed little in millions of years of evolution.
Howler monkeys have prehensile tails, or tails that can grip.
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