amplection
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 0.00 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
10
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A form of pseudocopulation, found chiefly in amphibians and horseshoe crabs, in which a male grasps a female with his front legs; amplexus.
Dated
Example Sentences
- "Here let us cross the river Taw to Instow, on the left hand, which some call Yonestow, stands as a witness to the marriage of Taw and Torridge, which with their close amplections have demi-insulated this parish."
- "Yet such are the Authors whom M.N. followeth and adoreth, witness his wise amplexion of Helmont's Archoeus […]."
- "The amplection of the ruddy goose, the swan’s accolade, mongoose embrace, and the interlacing of pigeons .... she has all these gracious gestures at command."
- "The mating amplexion in this species is axillary, as described for other species of the Bufonidae."
- "The first two pairs of legs are chelate or sub- chelate, better developed in males and useful for prehension primarily in copulatory amplexion."
- "The most commonly observed amplection in the laboratory is one in which the left second gnathopod is reversed and hooked under the posterior portion of the fifth peraeon segment of the female."
Etymology
From Middle English amplection, amplexion, from Latin amplexiō (“act of embracing”), from amplex-, past participial stem of amplector (“surround; embrace”), + -iō. In this form, with remodelling after Latin amplector. By surface analysis, amplect + -ion.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: amplection, amplexiō, amplector