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lanugo

[ luh-noo-goh, -nyoo- ]
/ ləˈnu goʊ, -ˈnyu- /
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See synonyms for lanugo on Thesaurus.com
noun, plural la·nu·gos.Biology.
a coat of delicate, downy hairs, especially that with which the human fetus or a newborn infant is covered.
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Origin of lanugo

1670–80; <Latin lānūgō wooliness, down, derivative of lānawool

Words nearby lanugo

lanthanum, lanthorn, Lantsang, lanuginose, lanuginous, lanugo, Lanús, lanyard, Lanza, Lanzarote, Lanzhou
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

Words related to lanugo

lint, down, fiber, floss, fur, hair, nap, pile, dust ball, dust bunnies

How to use lanugo in a sentence

  • I have included the down on the human body and the lanugo on the foetus as a rudimentary representation of a hairy coat.

    More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II|Charles Darwin

  • Man comes into the world covered almost entirely with lanugo or short fine hair.

    The Races of Man|Joseph Deniker

  • Up to this time the body has been covered with a fine hair called lanugo.

    Herself|E. B. Lowry

British Dictionary definitions for lanugo

lanugo
/ (ləˈnjuːɡəʊ) /
noun plural -gos
a layer of fine hairs, esp the covering of the human fetus before birth

Derived forms of lanugo

lanuginous (ləˈnjuːdʒɪnəs) or lanuginose, adjectivelanuginousness, noun

Word Origin for lanugo

C17: from Latin: down, from lāna wool
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

Medical definitions for lanugo

lanugo
[ lə-nōō′gō, ]
n. pl. la•nu•gos
The fine, soft hair that grows on a fetus and is present on a newborn.lanugo hair
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Scientific definitions for lanugo

lanugo
[ lə-nōō′gō ]
A covering of fine, soft hair or hairlike structures, as on a leaf, insect, or human fetus.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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