coelom
Americannoun
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coeloms,
plural
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coelomata
plural
noun
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The body cavity that forms from the mesoderm during the embryonic development of more complex animals. The coelom suspends the gut in fluid in the middle of the body, protecting it from gravity and allowing great increases in body size. The presence or absence of a coelom is important for the classification of animal phyla.
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See more at deuterostome protostome
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of coelom
1875–80; < Greek koílōma cavity, equivalent to koilō-, variant stem of koiloûn to hollow out (verbal derivative of koîlos hollow) + -ma noun suffix denoting result
Vocabulary lists containing coelom
Example Sentences
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The evolution of the coelom is associated with many functional advantages.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
The presence of a coelom affords many advantages, and animals with a coelom may be termed true coelomates or pseudocoelomates, depending on which tissue gives rise to the coelom.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
In some animals, such as mammals, the part of the coelom called the pleural cavity provides space for the lungs to expand during breathing.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
Organs housed within the coelom can grow and move freely, which promotes optimal organ development and placement.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
In Crania it is completely shut off from the main coelom, but in Lingula it communicates freely with this cavity.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 3 "Borgia, Lucrezia" to "Bradford, John" by Various
Although still functional, these are considered false coeloms, and those animals are called pseudocoelomates.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
