pinna

American  

[pin-uh] / ˈpɪn ə /

noun

plural

pinnae, pinnas

1. Botany. one of the primary divisions of a pinnate leaf.

2. Zoology.

   1. a feather, wing, or winglike part.

   2. a fin or flipper.

3. Anatomy. auricle.

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pinna British  

/ ˈpɪnə /

noun

1. any leaflet of a pinnate compound leaf

2. zoology a feather, wing, fin, or similarly shaped part

3. another name for auricle

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pinna Scientific  

/ pĭn′ə /

plural

pinnae

1. A leaflet or primary division of a pinnately compound leaf, especially of a fern frond.

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Other Word Forms

• pinnal adjective

Etymology

Origin of pinna

1660–70; < Latin: feather, wing, fin

Example Sentences

The researchers call transients Orcinus rectipinnus, noting that, in Latin, “recti means right or upright, and pinna means fin, feather, or wing, most likely referring to the tall erect dorsal fin of males.”

From Los Angeles Times

Their ear flaps, or pinnae, can independently rotate forward, backward, and sideways to zero in on a sound’s location.

From National Geographic

Carella says bacterial infections are having a greater impact than the parasite in Italy as well as Greece and Croatia, noting that H. pinnae was absent when she first described the disease in Italy.

From Science Magazine

In recent weeks, tests confirmed the same parasite, Haplosporidium pinnae, is responsible for pen shell die-offs in parts of Greece, and researchers have reported mass mortality as far east as Turkey and Cyprus.

From Washington Times

Humans do have weak vestigial muscles attached to the shell of the ear, called the auricle or pinna, as well as evidence of a vestigial nervous system, which could have functioned to orient the ears.

From New York Times

Related Words

• brochure
• flier
• handbill
• handout
• pamphlet