axilla

American  

[ak-sil-uh] / ækˈsɪl ə /

noun

plural

axillae

1. Anatomy. the armpit.

2. Ornithology. the corresponding region under the wing of a bird.

3. Botany. an axil.

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axilla British  

/ ækˈsɪlə /

noun

1. the technical name for the armpit

2. the area on the undersurface of a bird's wing corresponding to the armpit

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Etymology

Origin of axilla

Borrowed into English from Latin around 1610–20

Example Sentences

The temperature in the axilla is normally about half a degree lower than in the mouth.

From American Red Cross Text-Book on Home Hygiene and Care of the Sick by Cross, American Red

Mrs. D., aged thirty-six, prolonged suppuration due to abscess of the axilla; nine months' standing.

From New, Old, and Forgotten Remedies: Papers by Many Writers by Anshutz, Edward Pollock

The skin on the flanks, especially the axilla, is areolate.

From A Synopsis of Neotropical Hylid Frogs, Genus Osteocephalus by Duellman, William E.

A dark stripe extends from the nostril to the eye and thence posteriorly to a point between the axilla and groin.

From A Distributional Study of the Amphibians of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico by Duellman, William E.

Flanks dark brown with pale blue spots in axilla and groin and bluish white flecks on mid-flank.

From Neotropical Hylid Frogs, Genus Smilisca by Duellman, William E.