acephalous

[ ey-sef-uh-luh s ]

/ eɪˈsɛf ə ləs /

adjective

Also a·ce·phal·ic

[ey-suh-fal-ik] /ˌeɪ səˈfæl ɪk/. Zoology. headless; lacking a distinct head.

without a leader or ruler.

Nearby words

acephalocyst, acephalogasteria, acephalorrhachia, acephalostomia, acephalothoracia, acephalous, acephaly, acephate, acequia, acer, aceramic

Origin of acephalous

1725–35; < Greek aképhalos; see a-⁶, -cephalous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for acephalous

I cannot imagine anything more manifestly made to be a tyranny than such an acephalous aristocracy.
What I Saw in America|G. K. Chesterton
But in its present acephalous condition it is but a fragment of sciencea headless corpse, unfit to rank among complete sciences.
Buchanan's Journal of Man, April 1887|Various
He found it more 'acephalous' than ever; 'less order; less unity of purpose.'
The Life of William Ewart Gladstone, Vol. 1 (of 3)|John Morley
Anarchism, with its knife and bomb, is a miscarriage of Socialism, an acephalous birth from that fruitful mother.
New Worlds For Old|Herbert George Wells

Its cercari are usually found in an acephalous mollusc, known by the name of Cyclas cornea.
Animal Parasites and Messmates|P. J. Van Beneden

British Dictionary definitions for acephalous

acephalous

/ (əˈsɛfələs) /

adjective

having no head or one that is reduced and indistinct, as certain insect larvae

having or recognizing no ruler or leader

Word Origin for acephalous

C18: via Medieval Latin from Greek akephalos. See a- 1, -cephalic

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

Word Origin and History for acephalous

acephalous

adj.

"headless," 1731, from French acéphale + -ous, or directly from Late Latin acephalus, from Greek akephalos, from a- "not" + kephale "head" (see cephalo-).