motor fiber
- noun
- /ˈmoʊtər ˈfaɪbər/
- Specialized
:
fibra motora
- Motor fibers transmit signals from the spinal cord to the muscles, enabling movement.
Examples
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Damage to motor fibers can lead to muscle weakness and impaired coordination.
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Each motor fiber is responsible for controlling specific muscle groups during physical activity.
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This year after the injury, once vital sensory and motor fiber tracts and collections of nerve cell bodies are largely replaced by bands of scar.
Fiction book (1998)
Synonyms
5
7.0
A long thin part of a nerve cell that sends electrical signals to other cells
4
3.4
A long thin part of a nerve cell that sends electrical signals
A thin thread that carries messages from the brain to a muscle to make it move
A nerve that carries signals from the brain or spinal cord to muscles and glands
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun is a straightforward composition of 'motor' (relating to movement/nerves) and 'fiber' (a threadlike cell), so knowing both constituents lets a learner infer it denotes a nerve/muscle-related fiber that carries motor signals. Although technical, the compound follows normal noun–modifier semantics and similar logic exists in many languages, making the meaning predictable for learners who know the parts.
Etymology
The term motor fiber comes from a simple image: a thin fiber that carries a motor message, a message that makes something 'move', from the brain to a muscle. So, motor fiber means a nerve that sends messages from the brain and spinal cord to make muscles move.