cecum

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)
cecum
    n 1: the cavity in which the large intestine begins and into
         which the ileum opens; "the appendix is an offshoot of the
         cecum" [syn: {cecum}, {caecum}, {blind gut}]
from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
caecum \cae"cum\, n.; pl. {C[ae]cums}, L. {C[ae]ca}. [L. caecus
   blind, invisible, concealed.] (Anat.)
   (a) A cavity open at one end, as the blind end of a canal or
       duct.
   (b) The blind part of the large intestine beyond the entrance
       of the small intestine; -- called also the {blind gut}.
       [Also spelled {cecum}.]
       [1913 Webster]

   Note: The c[ae]cum is comparatively small in man, and ends in
         a slender portion, the vermiform appendix; but in
         herbivorous mammals it is often as large as the rest of
         the large intestine. In fishes there are often numerous
         intestinal c[ae]ca.
         [1913 Webster]
from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
cecum \cecum\ n.
   The {caecum}, the cavity in which the large intestine begins
   and into which the ileum opens.

   Syn: caecum, blind gut.
        [WordNet 1.5]
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