Umbilicus

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Umbilicus \Um`bi*li"cus\, n. [L. See {Umbilic}.]
     1. (Anat.) The depression, or mark, in the median line of the
        abdomen, which indicates the point where the umbilical
        cord separated from the fetus; the navel; the belly
        button, in humans.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. (Gr. & Rom. Antiq.) An ornamented or painted ball or boss
        fastened at each end of the stick on which manuscripts
        were rolled. --Dr. W. Smith.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. (Bot.) The hilum.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     4. (Zool.)
        (a) A depression or opening in the center of the base of
            many spiral shells.
        (b) Either one of the two apertures in the calamus of a
            feather.
            [1913 Webster]
  
     5. (Geom.)
        (a) One of the foci of an ellipse, or other curve. [Obs.]
        (b) A point of a surface at which the curvatures of the
            normal sections are all equal to each other. A sphere
            may be osculatory to the surface in every direction at
            an umbilicus. Called also {umbilic}.
            [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  umbilicus
       n : scar where the umbilical cord was attached [syn: {navel}, {bellybutton},
            {omphalos}, {omphalus}]
       [also: {umbilici} (pl)]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  24 Moby Thesaurus words for "umbilicus":
     axis, center, center of action, center of gravity, centroid,
     centrum, core, dead center, epicenter, heart, hub, kernel, marrow,
     medulla, metacenter, middle, nave, navel, nub, nucleus, omphalos,
     pith, pivot, storm center