Link Centre Dictionary

sheath

UK/ʃiːð/ US/ʃið/ uncommon informal obsolete uk

noun

1.
2.

an enveloping structure or covering enclosing an animal or plant organ or part

Synonyms
3.

Origin

From Middle English sheth, shethe (“holder for a sword, knife, etc., scabbard, sheath”) [and other forms], from Old English sċēaþ (“sheath”), from Proto-West Germanic *skaiþiju, from Proto-Germanic *skaiþiz (“sheath; covering”), from Proto-Indo-European *skey- (“to dissect, split”) (possibly from the notion of a split stick with a sword inserted). The English word is cognate with Danish skede, Dutch schede, Icelandic skeið, German Scheide, Low German scheed, Norwegian skjede.

Phrases

  • femoral sheath
  • leaf sheath
  • medullary sheath
  • myelin sheath
  • penile sheath
  • penis sheath
  • rice sheath mite
  • root sheath

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.