Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

xiphiplastron

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables
xiphiplas-tron
IPA
27
Scrabble Score
13
Letters
2
Syllables
11
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The posterior, or fourth lateral plate in the plastron of a turtle.

Etymology

Coined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1872 as xipho- + plastron. Superseded the earlier xiphisternum, a nominalised form of the French adjective xiphisternal, coined by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1818. The prefix is from Ancient Greek ξιφοειδής (xiphoeidḗs, “sword-shaped”), ultimately from ξίφος (xíphos, “sword”), in analogy with the xiphoid process at the posteriormost end of the human sternum.

Word Breakdown

Inflected Forms

xiphiplastrons (plural) xiphiplastra (plural)

Derived Forms

xiphiplastral

Questions

What does xiphiplastron mean?
The posterior, or fourth lateral plate in the plastron of a turtle.
Where does xiphiplastron come from?
Coined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1872 as xipho- + plastron. Superseded the earlier xiphisternum, a nominalised form of the French adjective xiphisternal, coined by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1818. The prefix is from Ancient Greek ξιφοειδής (xiphoeidḗs, “sword-shaped”), ultimately from ξίφος (xíphos, “sword”), in analogy with the xiphoid process at the posteriormost end of the human sternum.

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