acephalous
Americanadjective
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Zoology. Also acephalic headless; lacking a distinct head.
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without a leader or ruler.
adjective
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having no head or one that is reduced and indistinct, as certain insect larvae
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having or recognizing no ruler or leader
Etymology
Origin of acephalous
1725–35; < Greek aképhalos; see a- 6, -cephalous
Explanation
Anything that is acephalous is headless — like the acephalous horseman of folklore. The term acephalous refers to organisms that lack a head, or to a group or society with no leader, or "head." Clams, oysters, mussels, and scallops are acephalous, as are sea stars, sea urchins, and sponges. Some historical tribal societies were acephalous: they had no one formal, decision-making authority. Leaderless digital communities and music bands are acephalous. The term is also used in poetry: An acephalous line is missing its first syllable based on an expected metrical pattern — e.g., "da-DUM da-DUM" becomes "DUM da-DUM." The term acephalous comes from Greek, where a- means "without" and kephalē means "head."
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.
Almost all bivalve shells, or those of acephalous mollusca, are marine, about sixteen only out of 140 genera being fresh-water.
From The Student's Elements of Geology by Sir Charles Lyell
There is nothing more audacious in the poet's conception of the worm looking up towards humanity, than the naturalist's theory that the progenitor of the human race was an acephalous mollusk.
From Ralph Waldo Emerson by Oliver Wendell Holmes
They are like oysters, with extreme stress of shell, and only a blind, soft, acephalous body within.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 09, No. 54, April, 1862 by Various
Only one of my books is without a preface,—though some of them are disguised as notes, or forewords, or afterwords,—and I hereby apologize for the acephalous condition of that volume.
From Woven with the Ship A Novel of 1865 by Cyrus Townsend Brady
The presence of a brain is not essential, because acephalous monsters develop without brain, and they are born alive; they have a vital principle which is identical with the soul.
From Essays In Pastoral Medicine by Austin ?Malley
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