somite

[ soh-mahyt ]

/ ˈsoʊ maɪt /

noun

any of the longitudinal series of segments or parts into which the body of certain animals is divided; a metamere.

Embryology. one member of a series of paired segments into which the thickened dorsal zone of mesoderm is divided.

Nearby words

somewhere along the line, somewheres, somewhile, somewhither, somewise, somite, somme, sommelier, sommerfeld, somnambulate, somnambulism

Origin of somite

First recorded in 1865–70; som(a)¹ + -ite¹

Related forms

so·mi·tal

[soh-mi-tl] /ˈsoʊ mɪ tl/, so·mit·ic

[soh-mit-ik] /soʊˈmɪt ɪk/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for somite

But the mouth remains as an inpushing of the wall of the first somite.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 6|Various
(d) The appendages of the third somite (second post-oral) are clawless oral papillae.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 6|Various
Only one somite following the first post-oral or mandibular segment has its appendages modified as jaws.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 6|Various
In fact, more or less complete “excalation” of the somite takes place.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 3|Various

Ventral tentacular cirrus of second somite of a thin or foliaceous and asymmetrical form.
Journal of Entomology and Zoology, Vol. 11. No. 1.|Various

British Dictionary definitions for somite

somite

/ (ˈsəʊmaɪt) /

noun

embryol any of a series of dorsal paired segments of mesoderm occurring along the notochord in vertebrate embryos. It develops into muscle and bone in the adult animal

zoology another name for metamere

Derived Forms

somital (ˈsəʊmɪtəl) or somitic (səʊˈmɪtɪk), adjective

Word Origin for somite

C19: from Greek sōma a body

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

Medicine definitions for somite

somite

[ sō′mīt′ ]

n.

A segmental mass of mesoderm in the vertebrate embryo, occurring in pairs along the notochord and developing into muscles and vertebrae.

metamere