Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Nearest; proximate.
  • adjective Anatomy Nearer to a point of reference such as an origin, a point of attachment, or the midline of the body.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Proximate; nearest; next.
  • noun In zoology, the comparatively fixed or basal extremity of a limb or of an organism.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Toward or nearest, as to a body, or center of motion of dependence; proximate.
  • adjective Situated near the point of attachment or origin.
  • adjective Of or pertaining to that which is proximal. Opposed to distal.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective anatomy Closer to the point of attachment or observation.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective situated nearest to point of attachment or origin

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From Latin proximus, nearest; see proximate.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin proximus, superlative form of prope ("near, nigh").

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word proximal.

Examples

  • FlashLinq advances a concept known as proximal communications, whereby users can continuously connect, disconnect and communicate directly with other mobile users at broadband speeds based on their physical proximity.

    unknown title 2011

  • Seventy percent of reductions seen in colorectal cases and deaths were due to fewer cancers in the right part of the colon called the proximal colon, but the aspirin effect did not seem to reduce cancer in the lower part of the colon called the distal colon, and had only a small effect on rectal cancer, the researchers noted.

    BusinessWeek.com -- Top News 2010

  • Seventy percent of reductions seen in colorectal cases and deaths were due to fewer cancers in the right part of the colon called the proximal colon, but the aspirin effect did not seem to reduce cancer in the lower part of the colon called the distal colon, and had only a small effect on rectal cancer, the researchers noted.

    Yahoo! News: Business - Opinion 2010

  • Seventy percent of reductions seen in colorectal cases and deaths were due to fewer cancers in the right part of the colon called the proximal colon, but the aspirin effect did not seem to reduce cancer in the lower part of the colon called the distal colon, and had only a small effect on rectal cancer, the researchers noted.

    Yahoo! News: Business - Opinion 2010

  • It's called proximal - distal, dorsal - ventral, anterior - posterior.

    ScreenTalk 2009

  • It's called proximal - distal, dorsal - ventral, anterior - posterior.

    ScreenTalk 2009

  • It's called proximal - distal, dorsal - ventral, anterior - posterior.

    ScreenTalk 2009

  • It's called proximal - distal, dorsal - ventral, anterior - posterior.

    ScreenTalk 2009

  • It's called proximal - distal, dorsal - ventral, anterior - posterior.

    ScreenTalk 2009

  • "We chose to investigate 'proximal' prayer because that is how a lot of prayer for healing is actually practiced by Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians around the world," Brown said.

    Newswise: Latest News 2010

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.