taxis
1 Americannoun
plural
taxes-
arrangement or order, as in one of the physical sciences.
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Biology. oriented movement of a motile organism in response to an external stimulus, as toward or away from light.
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Surgery. the replacing of a displaced part, or the reducing of a hernia or the like, by manipulation without cutting.
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Architecture. the adaptation to the purposes of a building of its various parts.
noun
combining form
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indicating movement towards or away from a specified stimulus
thermotaxis
-
order or arrangement
phyllotaxis
noun
-
the movement of a cell or organism in a particular direction in response to an external stimulus
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surgery the repositioning of a displaced organ or part by manual manipulation only
Other Word Forms
- -tactic combining form
Etymology
Origin of taxis
1720–30; < New Latin < Greek táxis, equivalent to tak- (base of tássein to arrange, put in order) + -sis -sis
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“By carefully choosing our location, 90% of our daily needs are within a 10-minute stroll. Otherwise, we take taxis with an average fare of $2.50 or ride Cuenca’s light rail for 17 cents.”
From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026
They had been staying in a hotel for two years, paying cash for their room under a false name and using taxis and public transport to avoid detection.
From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026
The Singapore-listed firm operates more than 54,000 vehicles across 13 countries in Asia Pacific and Europe, running buses, taxis, trains and other transport services.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 6, 2026
Nevertheless, on Saturday morning just before the strikes, life in Tehran was moving at its usual pace, taxis and buses were inching through mid-morning traffic and people were running errands.
From Barron's • Feb. 28, 2026
When we arrived in London, we tumbled into three taxis and went clattering across the great city to King’s Cross, where we got on to the train for Newcastle, two hundred miles to the north.
From "Boy: Tales of a Childhood" by Roald Dahl
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.