rete

American  

[ree-tee] / ˈri ti /

noun

plural

retia

1. a pierced plate on an astrolabe, having projections whose points correspond to the fixed stars.

2. a network, as of fibers, nerves, or blood vessels.

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rete British  

/ ˈriːtɪ /

noun

1. anatomy any network of nerves or blood vessels; plexus

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Other Word Forms

• retial adjective

Etymology

Origin of rete

1350–1400; Middle English riet < Latin rēte net

Example Sentences

Vogl speculates that the ancestors of cetaceans probably had retia mirabilia leading to the brain before they ever took to the oceans—but that this network served a different purpose on land.

From Scientific American

Crucially, when blood is pumped into the animal's gills to collect oxygen, heat loss is minimised by a dense, intertwined network of blood vessels called a rete mirabile.

From BBC

During a dissection, Wegner noticed that the gills were sporting the same kind of blue and red blood vessels, called retia mirabilia, that tuna and sharks use to heat parts of their bodies.

From The Verge

This arrangement of paired arteries and veins is known as a rete mirabile, or “wonderful net,” and often functions as a countercurrent heat exchanger in other species.

From Science Magazine

This network, called a rete mirabile, was described in the devil rays 30 years ago.

From BBC