pineal
Americanadjective
-
resembling a pine cone
-
of or relating to the pineal gland
Other Word Forms
- prepineal adjective
Etymology
Origin of pineal
1675–85; < New Latin pīneālis, equivalent to Latin pīne ( a ) pine cone, noun use of feminine of pīneus of a pine tree ( pīn ( us ) pine 1 + -eus -eous ) + -ālis -al 1
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.
Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland that regulates the body's sleep-wake cycle.
From Science Daily • Nov. 4, 2025
But in the case of cysts of the pineal gland, there is a large amount of information on the web which prompts patients to seek surgery for minor and often unrelated symptoms.
From BBC • Dec. 4, 2024
This neurochemical comes from the pineal gland, a petite structure located in the center of the brain that philosopher René Descartes once described as the “seat of the soul” and rational thought.
From Scientific American • May 5, 2023
Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone produced by the pineal gland, a small structure at the center of the brain.
From Washington Post • Dec. 19, 2022
Descartes solved this problem as best he could by claiming that mind acted on the body through the pineal gland.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
