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cecum

or cae·cum

[ see-kuhm ]
/ ˈsi kəm /
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noun, plural ce·ca [see-kuh]. /ˈsi kə/. Anatomy, Zoology.
a cul-de-sac, especially that in which the large intestine begins.
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Origin of cecum

1715–25; short for Latin intestinum caecum blind gut

OTHER WORDS FROM cecum

cecal, adjectivece·cal·ly, adverbsub·ce·cal, adjective

Words nearby cecum

Cecilia, Cecily, cecity, Cecropia moth, Cecrops, cecum, CED, cedant arma togae, cedar, cedar apple, cedar chest
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cecum in a sentence

  • It lives in the large intestine, especially the cecum, with its slender extremity embedded in the mucous membrane.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd

  • One of them may occupy the cecum, another the transverse colon, and possibly a third the sigmoid flexure.

    Intestinal Ills|Alcinous Burton Jamison

  • These two occur in the small intestine; a form intermediate in size may also be found in the cecum and colon.

    Special Report on Diseases of the Horse|United States Department of Agriculture

  • The latter is somewhat smaller and is found in the cecum and large intestine.

    Special Report on Diseases of Cattle|U.S. Department of Agriculture

British Dictionary definitions for cecum

cecum
/ (ˈsiːkəm) /
noun plural -ca (-kə)
US a variant spelling of caecum

Derived forms of cecum

cecal, adjective
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

Scientific definitions for cecum

cecum
[ sē′kəm ]
Plural ceca
A large pouch forming the beginning of the large intestine. The appendix and the ileum of the small intestine both connect to the cecum.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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