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theca

[ thee-kuh ]
/ ˈθi kə /

noun, plural the·cae [thee-see]. /ˈθi si/.

a case or receptacle.
Botany, Mycology.
  1. a sac, cell, or capsule.
  2. a sporangium.
Anatomy, Zoology. a case or sheath enclosing an organ, structure, etc., as the horny covering of an insect pupa or the loose membrane covering the spinal cord.

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Origin of theca

1655–65; <Latin thēca, from Greek thḗkē “case, cover,” akin to tithénai “to place, put”

OTHER WORDS FROM theca

thecal, adjective

Words nearby theca

Brothers Karamazov, The, The buck stops here, The Buddha, the business, The business of America is business, theca, theca-cell tumor, theca cordis, theca folliculi, thecal, Call of the Wild, The
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for theca

British Dictionary definitions for theca

theca
/ (ˈθiːkə) /

noun plural -cae (-siː)

botany an enclosing organ, cell, or spore case, esp the capsule of a moss
zoology a hard outer covering, such as the cup-shaped container of a coral polyp

Derived forms of theca

thecal or thecate, adjective

Word Origin for theca

C17: from Latin thēca, from Greek thēkē case; related to Greek tithenai to place
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

Medical definitions for theca

theca
[ thē′kə ]

n. pl. the•cae (-sē′, -kē′)

A case, covering, or sheath, such as the outer covering of the cocoon of certain insects.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Scientific definitions for theca

theca
[ thē′kə ]

Plural thecae (thē′sē′, -kē′)

A case, covering, or sheath, such as the pollen sac of an anther, the spore case of a moss, or the outer covering of the pupa of certain insects.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.