Adjacent Words

Membrane definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

MEM'BRANE, n. [L. membrana.] In anatomy, a thin, white, flexible skin, formed by fibers interwoven like net-work, and serving to cover some part of the body.
The term is applied to the thin expanded parts, of various texture, both in animals and vegetables.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a thin pliable sheet of material
2: a pliable sheet of tissue that covers or lines or connects the organs or cells of animals or plants [syn: membrane, tissue layer]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Middle English, from Latin membrana skin, parchment, from membrum Date: 15th century 1. a thin soft pliable sheet or layer especially of animal or plant origin 2. a piece of parchment forming part of a roll • membraned adjective

Britannica Concise

In biology, the thin layer that forms the outer boundary of a living cell or of an internal cell compartment. The outer boundary is the plasma membrane, and the compartments enclosed by internal membranes are called organelles. Biological membranes have a dual function: separation of vital but incompatible metabolic processes conducted in the organelles; and passage of nutrients, wastes, and metabolic products between organelles and between the cell and the outside environment. Membranes consist largely of a double layer of lipids in which are embedded large proteins, many of which transport ions and water-soluble molecules across the membrane. See also cytoplasm, eukaryote.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 any pliable sheetlike structure acting as a boundary, lining, or partition in an organism. 2 a thin pliable sheet or skin of various kinds. Derivatives: membranaceous adj. membraneous adj. membranous adj. Etymology: L membrana skin of body, parchment (as MEMBER)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Membrane Mem"brane, n. [F., fr. L. membrana the skin that covers the separate members of the body, fr. L. membrum. See Member.] (Anat.) 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. Note: The term is also often applied to the thin, expanded parts, of various texture, both in animals and vegetables. Adventitious membrane, a membrane connecting parts not usually connected, or of a different texture from the ordinary connection; as, the membrane of a cicatrix. Jacob's membrane. See under Retina. Mucous membranes (Anat.), the membranes lining passages and cavities which communicate with the exterior, as well as ducts and receptacles of secretion, and habitually secreting mucus. Schneiderian membrane. (Anat.) See Schneiderian. Serous membranes (Anat.), the membranes, like the peritoneum and pleura, which line, or lie in, cavities having no obvious outlet, and secrete a serous fluid.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(membranes) A membrane is a thin piece of skin which connects or covers parts of a person's or animal's body. N-COUNT

Moby Thesaurus

allantoic membrane, amnion, amniotic sac, arachnoid membrane, basement membrane, coat, coating, collop, conjuctiva, covering, cut, deal, disk, eardrum, feuille, film, flap, foil, fold, hymen, lamella, lamina, laminated glass, laminated wood, lap, leaf, maidenhead, membrana serosa, membrana tympana, meninges, meninx, neurilemma, pane, panel, patina, peel, pellicle, pericardium, perineurium, plait, plank, plate, plating, pleura, ply, plywood, rasher, safety glass, scum, serosa, sheet, skin, slab, slat, slice, table, tablet, tympanic membrane, tympanum, velum, veneer, wafer