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Glite Dictionary
acephalism

acephalism

9.9
A birth defect in which an animal or person has no head
  • noun
  • /əˈsɛfəlɪzəm/
  • Specialized
: acefalismo
  • The rare condition known as acephalism results in the absence of a head at birth.

Examples

  • The medical report documented several cases of acephalism in malformed embryos.

  • Scientists studied instances of acephalism in certain amphibian populations.

  • The rare condition known as acephalism affects the development of the brain.

  • Many studies focus on acephalism in animal species.

  • The medical report documented several cases of acephalism in malformed embryos.

  • Scientists studied instances of acephalism in certain amphibian populations.

  • The rare condition known as acephalism results in the absence of a head at birth.

Synonyms

acephaly
vsacephalism
  • Specialized
9.9

A condition present at birth when a baby or animal has no head

is the identical concept but uses a different term form
acephalia
vsacephalism
  • Specialized
9.9

A lack of a head in an animal or human before birth

is broader, applying to animals and humans rather than only certain organisms

Surface Forms

acephalism singular
acephalisms plural

Morphology

acephalism = acephaly (opaque) = a + cephal + ism

Although analyzable as a- (not) + cephal (head) + -ism, the combining form 'cephal' and the derived nouns are specialized medical forms not transparent to average learners.

Etymology

The word acephalism comes from Greek parts a- meaning 'without' and cephal- meaning 'head'. The same cephal- appears in cephalopod, the group with octopus and squid, so acephalism refers to a condition of being 'without a head'.