seta

American  

[see-tuh] / ˈsi tə /

noun

Biology.

plural

setae

1. a stiff hair; bristle or bristlelike part.

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seta British  

/ sɪˈteɪʃəs, ˈsiːtə /

noun

1. (in invertebrates and some plants) any bristle or bristle-like appendage

2. (in mosses) the stalk of the sporophyte that bears the capsule

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seta Scientific  

/ sē′tə /

plural

setae

1. A stiff hair, bristle, or bristlelike process or part on an organism. Setae on the bodies of spiders are used as sensory organs, while setae on the bodies of many polychaete worms, such as earthworms, are used for locomotion. Microscopic setae on the feet of geckos allow adhesion to vertical surfaces.

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Other Word Forms

• setaceous
  adjective
• setaceously
  adverb
• setal
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of seta

First recorded in 1785–95, seta is from the Latin word sēta, saeta “bristle”

Example Sentences

Geckos’ toes are covered with hundreds of thousands of tiny hairs known as setae, with each seta, in turn, branching into hundreds of tiny, flat, triangular tips called spatulae.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019

I knew that the word for underpants is mutande, but seta, meaning "silk", was not then in my vocabulary.

From The Guardian • Jan. 9, 2011

Setiform: in the form of a bristle or seta: when a slender short bristle arises from a thicker basal joint.

From Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by Smith, John. B.

Tomopteris is remarkable for the fact that the hammer-shaped prostomium has paired ventral processes each with a single seta.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various

The tiers below give rise to the seta and foot.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3 "Brescia" to "Bulgaria" by Various