chelicera

[ kuh-lis-er-uh ]
/ kəˈlɪs ər ə /

noun, plural che·lic·er·ae [kuh-lis-uh-ree] /kəˈlɪs əˌri/.

one member of the first pair of usually pincerlike appendages of spiders and other arachnids.
Compare pedipalp.

Origin of chelicera

1825–35; < New Latin, equivalent to cheli- cheli- + Greek kér(as) horn + Latin -a feminine noun ending

OTHER WORDS FROM chelicera

che·lic·er·al, adjective che·lic·er·ate [kuh-lis-uh-reyt, -er-it] /kəˈlɪs əˌreɪt, -ər ɪt/, adjective

Words nearby chelicera

chelan, chelate, chelating agent, chelation, cheli-, chelicera, chelicerate, cheliferous, cheliform, cheliped, chellean

British Dictionary definitions for chelicerate (1 of 2)

chelicerate
/ (kɪˈlɪsəˌreɪt) /

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the Chelicerata, a subphylum of arthropods, including arachnids and the horseshoe crab, in which the first pair of limbs are modified as chelicerae

noun

any arthropod belonging to the Chelicerata

British Dictionary definitions for chelicerate (2 of 2)

chelicera
/ (kɪˈlɪsərə) /

noun plural -erae (-əˌriː)

one of a pair of appendages on the head of spiders and other arachnids: often modified as food-catching claws

Derived forms of chelicera

cheliceral, adjective

Word Origin for chelicera

C19: from New Latin, from French chélicère, from chél- see chela 1 + -cère from Greek keras horn

Scientific definitions for chelicerate

chelicerate
[ kə-lĭs′ər-āt′, -ĭt ]

Any of various, mostly terrestrial arthropods of the subphylum Chelicerata, having a body divided into two main parts: a cephalothorax and an abdomen. Chelicerates have specialized feeding appendages (chelicerae) and lack antennae. Chelicerates include the arachnids and merostomes (horseshoe crabs) and are closely related to the extinct trilobites.