aboral

American

[ab-awr-uhl, -ohr-] / æbˈɔr əl, -ˈoʊr- /

adjective

Anatomy, Zoology.

opposite to or away from the mouth.

aboral British

/ æbˈɔːrəl /

adjective

zoology away from or opposite the mouth

"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

Other Word Forms

aborally adverb

Etymology

Origin of aboral

First recorded in 1855–60; ab- + oral

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Beyond its cellular diversity, the aboral organ also appears to be closely connected to the comb jelly's nervous system.

From Science Daily • Mar. 6, 2026

This difference suggests that the aboral organ may not be directly equivalent to brains found in other animal groups.

From Science Daily • Mar. 6, 2026

Gibbons prefer life high up off the ground and are crippled by the loss of an aboral home.

From National Geographic • Jun. 21, 2018

Water enters the madreporite on the aboral side of the echinoderm.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Tentacles soon sprout out from one end of the embryo's body and a mouth is formed; the column becomes more slender and attaches itself by the aboral pole to some solid object.

From Freshwater Sponges, Hydroids & Polyzoa by Annandale, Nelson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023