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Glite Dictionary
tergite

tergite

9.9
A hard plate on the back of an insect or animal like a crab
  • noun
  • /ˈtɜrɡaɪt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : tergito
  • The entomologist carefully examined the abdominal tergite of the insect under the microscope.
  • abdominal tergite

Examples

  • The crustacean's dorsal tergite protected its vital organs from predators.

  • Each tergite on the beetle's back was intricately patterned, contributing to its camouflage.

  • Abdominal tergite

    Academic text (2018)

Surface Forms

tergite singular
tergites plural

Morphology

tergite = terg + ite

A technical New Latin formation from a bound combining form 'terg-' (not a standalone English word) plus the scientific suffix '-ite', so its meaning ('dorsal plate') is specialized and not transparently derivable by an average B1 learner.

Etymology

Tergite comes from the Latin tergum, meaning 'back', plus the ending -ite used for parts. So a tergite is a 'back plate', the hard top piece that covers a segment of an insect or crab.