aftershaft

[af-ter-shaft, ahf-ter-shahft]

noun Ornithology.

a supplementary feather, usually small, arising from the underside of the base of the shafts of certain feathers in many birds.

the shaft of such a feather.

Origin of aftershaft

First recorded in 1865–70; after + shaft

Related formsaf·ter·shaft·ed, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for aftershaft

Historical Examples of aftershaft

Only in the cassowary and emu among adult birds is the aftershaft as large as the main shaft.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 2
Various

British Dictionary definitions for aftershaft

aftershaft

noun

ornithol a secondary feather arising near the base of a contour feather

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