white matter


nounAnatomy.
  1. nerve tissue, especially of the brain and spinal cord, which primarily contains myelinated fibers and is nearly white in color.: Compare gray matter (def. 1).

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Origin of white matter

1
First recorded in 1830–40

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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

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British Dictionary definitions for white matter

white matter

noun
  1. the whitish tissue of the brain and spinal cord, consisting mainly of myelinated nerve fibres: Technical name: substantia alba Compare grey matter

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for white matter

white matter

  1. The whitish tissue of the vertebrate brain and spinal cord, made up chiefly of nerve fibers (axons) covered in myelin sheaths. Compare gray matter.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.