chelicera

[kuh-lis-er-uh]

noun

plural

chelicerae 

1. one member of the first pair of usually pincerlike appendages of spiders and other arachnids.

chelicera

/ kɪˈlɪsərə /

noun

1. one of a pair of appendages on the head of spiders and other arachnids: often modified as food-catching claws

Other Word Forms

• cheliceral adjective
• chelicerate adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of chelicera¹

1825–35; < New Latin, equivalent to cheli- cheli- + Greek kér ( as ) horn + Latin -a feminine noun ending

Word History and Origins

Origin of chelicera¹

C19: from New Latin, from French chélicère, from chél- see _chela ¹ + -cère from Greek keras horn

Example Sentences

The chelicerae writhed, questing for prey, and the sphincter-maw spasmed, teeth clicking open and shut, searching for something to bite into.

Read more on Literature

What do they do with those long appendages that look like jaws, the chelicerae?

Read more on New York Times

They then perform a breaststroke maneuver with the chelicerae, spreading them like arms and pulling them back.

Read more on Scientific American

As they report in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, ticks first burrow into the host's skin with two telescoping, barbed structures called chelicerae.

Read more on Scientific American