Membrane
['membreɪn] or ['mɛmbren]
Definition
(noun.) a thin pliable sheet of material.
(noun.) a pliable sheet of tissue that covers or lines or connects the organs or cells of animals or plants.
Edited by Carlos--From WordNet
Definition
(n.) A thin layer or fold of tissue, usually supported by a fibrous network, serving to cover or line some part or organ, and often secreting or absorbing certain fluids.
Checked by Fern
Definition
n. (anat.) one of the thin textures which cover the organs or line the cavities or canals of the body: the film containing the seeds of a plant.—adjs. Membran′eous Mem′branous Membranā′ceous relating to consisting of or like a membrane; Membranif′erous; Mem′braniform.—Mucous membrane the membrane lining the various channels of the body which communicate with the outside.
Edited by Francine
Examples
- It floated up and produced a violent effect on the mucous membrane. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- A typical form of his transmitter, see Fig. 55, was a box covered with a vibrating membrane E, and provided with a mouth-piece at one side. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- An extremely wide flank-membrane stretches from the corners of the jaw to the tail, and includes the limbs with the elongated fingers. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- They arise from the palate, and are attached by flexible membrane to the sides of the mandible. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- What seems plainer than that the long toes, not furnished with membrane, of the Grallatores, are formed for walking over swamps and floating plants. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- It attacks the mucous membrane of the nose and lungs, and produces the effect of a severe cold or catarrh, and when inhaled, causes death. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- The wax should never be picked out with pin or sharp object except by a physician, lest injury be done to the tympanic membrane. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- The nose is provided with small hairs and a moist inner membrane which serve as filters in removing solid particles from the air, and in thus purifying it before its entrance into the lungs. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- One which I kept alive was certainly in this condition, the cause, as appeared on dissection, having been inflammation of the nictitating membrane. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- This flank-membrane is furnished with an extensor muscle. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- The phonograph and its modifications depend alone on sound waves--the recording of the waves from one vibrating membrane and their exact reproduction on another vibrating membrane. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- It may be due to a condition of fulness of the vessels of the stomach, relieved by any stimulus which, acting on the lining membrane, induces a flow of fluid from the glands. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- In the frigate-bird, the deeply scooped membrane between the toes shows that structure has begun to change. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- On the other hand, grebes and coots are eminently aquatic, although their toes are only bordered by membrane. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- The peculiar nature and arrangement of the membranes of the nose enable the nostrils to clean, and warm, and moisten the air which passes through them to the lungs. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- The pitch of the sound depends upon the tension of the stretched membranes, and since this can be altered by muscular action, the voice can be modulated at will. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
Inputed by Chris