seta

[ see-tuh ]

/ ˈsi tə /

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See synonyms for: setal on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural se·tae

[see-tee]. /ˈsi ti/. Biology.

a stiff hair; bristle or bristlelike part.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of seta

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

OTHER WORDS FROM seta

setal, adjective

Words nearby seta

sestet, sestina, Sestos, Sesto San Giovanni, set, seta, set about, setaceous, set against, set an example, set apart

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use seta in a sentence

Then move on to the Mandilli di seta al pesto, handmade handkerchief pasta with Genovese basil pesto.
The Easygoing Flair of San Francisco|Jolie Hunt|April 10, 2010|DAILY BEAST
This river bears in succession the names of Seta-gawa, Uji-gawa and Yodo-gawa.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 1|Various
The legs are flattened, and furnished with elegant feathery st (seta, a bristle), serving as gills or branchi.
An Elementary Text-book of the Microscope|John William Griffith
One of them forms a long and slender bristle (seta) or tongue, furnished with distant minute teeth.
An Elementary Text-book of the Microscope|John William Griffith

The English "seton" comes from seta, a hair, because hair was originally employed as the inserted material.
The Master of Game|Second Duke of York, Edward
One or more pairs of well developed anterior inner dorsocentral (acrostichal) macrocht; seta on extensor surface of hind tibia.
Handbook of Medical Entomology|William Albert Riley

British Dictionary definitions for seta

seta

/ (ˈsiːtə) /

noun plural -tae (-tiː)

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

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

Derived forms of seta

setaceous (sɪˈteɪʃəs), adjectivesetaceously, adverbsetal, adjective

Word Origin for seta

C18: from Latin

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 seta

seta

[ sē′tə ]

Plural setae (sē′tē)

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.