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pteryla

American  
[ter-uh-luh] / ˈtɛr ə lə /

noun

Ornithology.

plural

pterylae

  1. one of the feathered areas on the skin of a bird.

pteryla British  
/ ˈtɛrɪlə /

noun

  1. ornithol any of the tracts of skin that bear contour feathers, arranged in lines along the body of a bird

"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

Etymology

Origin of pteryla

1865–70; < New Latin < Greek pter ( ón ) feather + hȳ́lē woods

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.