aftershaft

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

/ ˈæf tərˌʃæft, ˈɑf tərˌʃɑft /

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.

Nearby words

afterpiece, afterpotential, afters, afterschool, aftersensation, aftershaft, aftershave, aftershave lotion, aftershock, aftershow, aftersound

Origin of aftershaft

First recorded in 1865–70; after + shaft

Related forms

af·ter·shaft·ed, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for 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

/ (ˈɑːftəˌʃɑːft) /

noun

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

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