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# dorsum

«dorsum» in Mova's school dictionary: **The back or upper surface of a body part, like the back…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

noun (a dorsum, dorsa)

### meaning for a pupil

1) (science, anatomy) The back or upper surface of a body part, like the back of the hand or the top of the foot or tongue. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#m1)

2) (science) The back of an animal. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#m2)

### sense in the lessons

Used in biology, medicine and anatomy diagrams; related to «dorsal» as in the dorsal fin of a shark; a pupil meets it mostly in science or in a doctor's notes; phrases: «dorsum of the hand», «dorsum of the foot».

### examples

- The doctor looked at the dorsum of my hand. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#x1)
- The dorsum of the foot is the top side. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#x2)
- The fish has a spiny dorsum. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#x3)
- Label the dorsum and the belly side on the diagram. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#x4)
- The dorsum of the tongue helps us taste food. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#x5)
- A frog has a green dorsum and a pale belly. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/#x6)

### note

Plural: dorsa (Latin). Technical word; everyday word: back. Related adjective: dorsal (e.g. dorsal fin). Opposite side: ventral.

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «dorsum» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dorsum/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.