Definitions

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

  • adjective Of, relating to, or of the nature of a vertebra.
  • adjective Having or consisting of vertebrae.
  • adjective Having a spinal column.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Of the nature of a vertebra; characteristic of or peculiar to vertebræ: as, vertebral elements or processes; vertebral segmentation.
  • Pertaining or relating to a vertebra or to vertebræ; spinal: as, vertebral arteries, nerves, muscles; a vertebral theory or formula.
  • Composed of vertebræ; axial, as the backbone of any vertebrate; spinal; rachidian: as, the vertebral column.
  • Having vertebræ; backboned; vertebrate: as, a vertebral animal.
  • In Echinodermata, axial: noting the median ossicles of the ray of any starfish, a series of which forms a solid internal axis of any ray or arm, each ossicle consisting of two lateral halves united by a longitudinal suture, and articulated by tenon-and-mortise joints upon their terminal surfaces. See Ophiuridæ, and cuts under Asteriidæ and Astrophyton.
  • In entomology, situated on or noting the median line of the upper surface.
  • noun A vertebrate.
  • noun A vertebral artery.
  • noun One of the unpaired horny plates which cover the median dorsal portion of the carapace of a turtle.

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

  • noun (Zoöl.), rare A vertebrate.
  • adjective (Anat.) Of or pertaining to a vertebra, vertebræ, or the vertebral column; spinal; rachidian.
  • adjective Vertebrate.

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

  • adjective Of or relating to a vertebra or the spine.
  • adjective Having or made of vertebrae.
  • adjective Having a spinal column.

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

  • adjective of or relating to or constituting vertebrae

Etymologies

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Examples

  • But this unsegmented primary axial skeleton is soon replaced by the segmented secondary axial skeleton, which we know as the vertebral column.

    The Evolution of Man — Volume 2 Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel 1876

  • So-called vertebral dissection can ultimately cut off the blood supply, which in turn can lead to a stroke and even death.

    Archive 2009-07-01 TK 2009

  • So-called vertebral dissection can ultimately cut off the blood supply, which in turn can lead to a stroke and even death.

    Beware the spinal trap TK 2009

  • New York, with the line from Vanceborough, Maine, to San Francisco, just described, or perhaps what may be called the vertebral column of the system, is the New York and Chicago railway post-office line, known also as the "Fast Mail" or the "White Mail," as the mail-cars on this line were originally painted white.

    The Bay State Monthly — Volume 1, No. 1, January, 1884 Various

  • The theory of the skull which held the field was known as the vertebral theory.

    Thomas Henry Huxley; A Sketch Of His Life And Work 1904

  • The theory of the skull which held the field was known as the vertebral theory.

    Thomas Henry Huxley A Sketch Of His Life And Work Mitchell, P Chalmers 1900

  • Venice gave Goethe the hint for the so-called vertebral theory of the skull.

    Dream Psychology Psychoanalysis for Beginners Sigmund Freud 1897

  • It might indeed be described as a vertebral column from which iron roads will ere long be extended laterally on either side, like ribs, to support and bind together the huge frame.

    The Awakening of China 1871

  • The human embryo has a very well marked caudal appendage; that is, the vertebral column appears prolonged, just as it is in a young quadruped.

    Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. Works Oliver Wendell Holmes 1851

  • The human embryo has a very well marked caudal appendage; that is, the vertebral column appears prolonged, just as it is in a young quadruped.

    Over the Teacups Oliver Wendell Holmes 1851

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