cornification

[ kawr-nuh-fi-key-shuhn ]

nounBiology.
  1. the formation of a horny layer of skin, or horny skin structures, as hair, nails, or scales, from squamous epithelial cells.

Origin of cornification

1
First recorded in 1835–45; corn2 + -i- + -fication

Words Nearby cornification

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

How to use cornification in a sentence

  • Nails arise in the interior of the epidermis by the thickening and cornification of the stratum lucidum.

    The Vertebrate Skeleton | Sidney H. Reynolds