furcula

[ fur-kyuh-luh ]

/ ˈfɜr kyə lə /

noun, plural fur·cu·lae [fur-kyuh-lee] /ˈfɜr kyəˌli/.

the forked clavicular bone of a bird; wishbone.

the ventral, forked appendage on the abdomen of a springtail that the insect uses in springing itself into the air.

Nearby words

furbish lousewort, furca, furcal, furcate, furcation, furcula, furculum, furfur, furfuraceous, furfural, furfuraldehyde

Origin of furcula

1855–60; < Latin: a forked prop. See fork, -ule

Related forms

fur·cu·lar, adjective

Definition for furcula (2 of 2)

furculum

[ fur-kyuh-luh m ]

/ ˈfɜr kyə ləm /

noun, plural fur·cu·la [fur-kyuh-luh] /ˈfɜr kyə lə/.

furcula.

Origin of furculum

From New Latin

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

Examples from the Web for furcula

The extremities of the furcula, where articulated to the coracoids, vary considerably in outline.
The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication, Vol. I.|Charles Darwin
Mucrones: in Collembola the two small end pieces of the furcula, proceeding from the dentes.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology|John. B. Smith
Anatomically, this genus is remarkable in the parrot tribe for having no furcula, or merry-thought bone.
The Queer, the Quaint and the Quizzical|Frank H. Stauffer
The furcula is large, and the scapula has a well developed acromion.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds

The coracoids are large, and the clavicles are nearly always united forming the furcula.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds

British Dictionary definitions for furcula

furcula

furculum (ˈfɜːkjʊləm)

/ (ˈfɜːkjʊlə) /

noun plural -lae (-ˌliː) or -la (-lə)

any forklike part or organ, esp the fused clavicles (wishbone) of birds

Word Origin for furcula

C19: from Latin: a forked support for a wall, diminutive of furca fork

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