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autotomy

au·tot·o·my
A a

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [aw-tot-uh-mee]
    • /ɔˈtɒt ə mi/
    • /ˌɔːtəʊtˈəʊmi/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [aw-tot-uh-mee]
    • /ɔˈtɒt ə mi/

Definitions of autotomy word

  • noun autotomy the casting off by an animal of a part of its body, to facilitate escape when attacked 3
  • noun autotomy the reflex action by which a leg, claw, tail, etc., as of a lobster, starfish, or lizard, is broken off at a special joint when the part is damaged, seized, etc.: the missing part then regenerates 3
  • noun plural autotomy Zoology. separation of a body part. self-amputation of a damaged or trapped appendage. 1
  • noun plural autotomy the performance of surgery upon oneself. 1
  • noun autotomy (chiefly zoology) The spontaneous removal of a limb, tail etc, especially by some invertebrates as a self-defense mechanism. 1
  • noun autotomy (chiefly zoology) The spontaneous removal of a limb, tail etc, especially by some invertebrates as a self-defense mechanism. 0

Information block about the term

Origin of autotomy

First appearance:

before 1895
One of the 18% newest English words
First recorded in 1895-1900; auto-1 + -tomy

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Autotomy

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

autotomy popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 59% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
According to our data about 64% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

autotomy usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Top questions with autotomy

  • what is autotomy in crayfish?

See also

Matching words

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