dorsal

¹ American  

[dawr-suhl] / ˈdɔr səl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or situated at the back, or dorsum.

2. Anatomy, Zoology.

   1. situated on or toward the upper side of the body, equivalent to the back, or posterior, in humans.

   2. situated on or toward the posterior plane in humans or toward the upper plane in quadrupeds.

3. Botany. pertaining to the surface away from the axis, as of a leaf; abaxial.

4. Phonetics. (of a speech sound) articulated with the dorsum of the tongue.

---

noun

1. Phonetics. a dorsal speech sound.

2. Anatomy. a dorsal structure.

dorsal ² American  

[dawr-suhl] / ˈdɔr səl /

noun

1. dossal.

---

dorsal British  

/ ˈdɔːsəl /

adjective

1. anatomy zoology relating to the back or spinal part of the body Compare ventral

2. botany of, relating to, or situated on the side of an organ that is directed away from the axis

3. articulated with the back of the tongue, as the (k) sound in English coot

---

dorsal Scientific  

/ dôr′səl /

1. Relating to or on the back or upper surface of an animal.

---

Other Word Forms

• dorsally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of dorsal

1535–45; < Medieval Latin dorsālis, equivalent to Latin dors ( um ) back + -ālis -al ¹

Explanation

Dorsal is a word taken from anatomy (the study of the body) and refers to things that have to do with one's back. The movie "Jaws" should have been called "Dorsal Fin," because that's almost all you ever see of the famous shark. Like dolphins and sharks, killer whales have prominent dorsal fins on their backs, but it's the ones on their tails you'll want to watch out for. You may have wondered why dogs, cats, and other animals carry their young around by the scruff of their necks. Well, the little one's dorsal sides have extra fat and fur to grab onto. The dorsal side is much harder to damage than the underside (the ventral side) where you'll find their tender tummies and tasty organs.

Example Sentences

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Dorsal view of the Neanderthal woman’s toe bone.

From The Guardian • Feb. 17, 2016

Figure 1.15 Dorsal and Ventral Body Cavities The ventral cavity includes the thoracic and abdominopelvic cavities and their subdivisions.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Figure 14.26 Ventral and Dorsal Visual Streams From the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe, visual processing continues in two streams—one into the temporal lobe and one into the parietal lobe.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Dorsal musculature of the neck, visible as the nuchal shield is removed.

From Scientific American • May 24, 2012

Dorsal ribs filiform, the broad wings with a marginal nerve.

From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Gray, Asa