efferent nerve
- noun
- /ˈɛfərənt nɜrv/
- Specialized
:
nervio eferente
- During the experiment, we observed that the efferent nerve transmits impulses that control muscle contractions.
Examples
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And we talked about some efferent nerve endings on the hair cells and the nerve fibers.
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Efferent nerve fibers coming from the brainstem have terminals that synapse directly on the outer hair cell.
Academic text (1998) -
I hope that you are finally clear on the difference between afferent and efferent nerves.
Fiction book (1994) -
Afferent and efferent nerve pathways move into and out of the spinal cord.
Academic text (2005) -
It probably results from the pathologic synapses between the small cochlear efferent nerves and the large cochlear afferent nerves.
Academic text (1995) -
The scientist explained how the efferent nerve carries signals from the brain to the muscles, allowing us to move.
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In her lecture, she described the role of the efferent nerve in sending information to the glands and muscles of the body.
Synonyms
1
4.5
A body part that sends messages from the brain and spine to make muscles move or glands work
Antonyms
- Specialized
A nerve that carries signals from parts that feel, like the skin, to the brain or spinal cord
Surface Forms
Morphology
Given the provided constituent meanings, 'efferent' explicitly denotes outward/transmitting signals and 'nerve' denotes a bundle carrying impulses, so the combined phrase directly denotes a nerve that carries impulses away from the central nervous system. This follows standard medical compounding patterns (directional adjective + noun) and would be immediately derivable for a learner who knows both words.
Etymology
Efferent nerve comes from Latin; efferent meant 'to carry away'. Imagine a road that sends messages out from the brain and spine to muscles or glands, so a nerve called efferent is one that sends signals away from the brain and spine.