Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

rachis

American  
[rey-kis] / ˈreɪ kɪs /
Or rhachis

noun

plural

rachises, rachides

  1. Botany.

    1. the axis of an inflorescence when somewhat elongated, as in a raceme.

    2. (in a pinnately compound leaf or frond) the prolongation of the petiole along which the leaflets are disposed.

    3. any of various axial structures.

  2. Ornithology. the part of the shaft of a feather bearing the web.

  3. Anatomy. spinal column.

rachis British  
/ ˈreɪkɪs, ˈreɪkɪəl, rəˈkɪdɪəl /

noun

  1. botany the main axis or stem of an inflorescence or compound leaf

  2. ornithol the shaft of a feather, esp the part that carries the barbs

  3. another name for spinal column

"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
rachis Scientific  
/ rā′kĭs /

plural

rachises

  1. A main axis or shaft, such as the main stem of an inflorescence, the stalk of a pinnately compound leaf, the shaft of a feather, or the spinal column.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of rachis

1775–85; < New Latin < Greek rháchis spine, ridge, backbone

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.

Rachis of spikes narrow, filiform, terete or angular.

From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by Rangachari, K.

His gifts and his prayers so prevailed with King Rachis that he consented to raise the siege of the city and return in peace to Pavia.

From The Formation of Christendom, Volume VII by Allies, Thomas W.

Hildebrand, Liutprand's co-regent, and successor, maintained himself only a few months, and had to resign the crown before the end of the year 744 to Rachis, duke of Friuli.

From The Formation of Christendom, Volume VII by Allies, Thomas W.

While Zachary continued to pay homage to the sovereignty of the emperors, Liutprand made himself master of the exarchate, and his successor, Rachis, immediately after stipulated with the Romans for a peace of twenty years.

From The Power Of The Popes by Daunou, Pierre Claude Fran?ois

Rachis, king of the Lombards, resigns his kingdom, 349; receives the cowl of St. Benedict from the hands of Pope Zacharias, 349.

From The Formation of Christendom, Volume VII by Allies, Thomas W.

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.