sagittal

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   anatomy: relating to a vertical plane that divides the body into left and right portions

   A sagittal section of the brain reveals structures along the body's front-to-back axis.

2. 2
   adj

   relating to the sagittal suture or a crest running lengthwise along the top of the skull

   The adult male gorilla develops a prominent sagittal crest for the attachment of jaw muscles.

3. 3
   adj

   shaped like or associated with an arrow

   The plant's sagittal leaves taper into backward-pointing lobes like an arrowhead.

Common collocations

• sagittal suture Adjective + noun

From Medieval Latin sagittalis, 'of an arrow,' from Latin sagitta, 'arrow,' + -alis. Anatomists applied the arrow image to the front-to-back suture on the skull and then to any parallel plane dividing the body into left and right portions.

Topics

External links

• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary
• Google Images