integumentary
Americanadjective
Usage
What does integumentary mean? Integumentary is an adjective used to refer to a covering or coating, especially natural coatings like skin, shells, and rinds. An integument is any coating or covering, but the term is primarily used for the outer layer of natural things like animals and plants. Integumentary is especially used in the term integumentary system to refer to the system of the human body that includes the skin and related things like hair and nails. Example: The integumentary layers of animals and plants are very different, but they often serve similar purposes.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of integumentary
First recorded in 1835–45; integument + -ary
Explanation
The structures on the outermost part of a plant or an animal's body make up its integumentary system. Integumentary means "forming a tough, protective layer." Your integumentary system includes your skin, hair, and fingernails, while your cat's is made up of his fur, skin, whiskers, and claws. Even plants have an integumentary system of hairs and an epidermis. All of these structures keep the organism safe. In the case of humans, our integumentary system also keeps us hydrated, regulates our body temperature, and allows us to sense the environment around us. The Latin source, integumentum, means "a covering."
Vocabulary lists containing integumentary
STAAR Biology: Biological Processes and Systems
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Organisms and Environments 5: Human Systems
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Were there whiskers, filaments or other integumentary structures on the snout and elsewhere?
From Scientific American • Jul. 23, 2017
The most obvious function of the integumentary system is the protection that the skin gives to underlying tissues.
From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015
The body’s largest organ system is the integumentary system, which includes the skin and its associated structures, such as hair and nails.
From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013
The integumentary system refers to the skin and its accessory structures, and it is responsible for much more than simply lending to your outward appearance.
From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013
Bony plates seem in some species to have formed an at any rate partial covering to the skin; but it is not certain that these integumentary appendages were present in all.
From The Ancient Life History of the Earth A Comprehensive Outline of the Principles and Leading Facts of Palæontological Science by Nicholson, Henry Alleyne
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.
