raphe

[ rey-fee ]

noun,plural ra·phae [rey-fee]. /ˈreɪ fi/.
  1. Anatomy. a seamlike union between two parts or halves of an organ or the like.

  2. Botany.

    • (in certain ovules) a ridge connecting the hilum with the chalaza.

    • a median line or slot on a cell wall of a diatom.

Origin of raphe

1
1745–55; <New Latin <Greek rhaphḗ seam, suture, akin to rháptein to sew, stitch together

Words Nearby raphe

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use raphe in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for raphe

raphe

/ (ˈreɪfɪ) /


nounplural -phae (-fiː)
  1. an elongated ridge of conducting tissue along the side of certain seeds

  2. a longitudinal groove on the valve of a diatom

  1. anatomy a connecting ridge, such as that between the two halves of the medulla oblongata

Origin of raphe

1
C18: via New Latin from Greek rhaphē a seam, from rhaptein to sew together

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

Scientific definitions for raphe

raphe

[ fē′ ]


Plural raphae (fē′)
  1. A seamlike line or ridge between two similar parts of a body organ, as in the scrotum.

  2. The portion of the funiculus that is united to the ovule wall, commonly visible as a line or ridge on the seed coat.

  1. A groove in the frustule of some diatoms.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.