filiform

/'failifɔ:m/

Thân thiện

The scientist examines a filiform crystal under the microscope.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Thin in diameter; resembling a thread: Having a long, slender, thread-like shape or structure.

Usage

• The word filiform is a technical adjective primarily used in scientific contexts, such as biology, medicine, and botany, to describe physical form.
• It is used attributively (before a noun) or predicatively (after a linking verb like "is" or "are").

Examples

• Attributive use:
  • The insect has long, filiform antennae.
  • Under the microscope, we observed filiform papillae on the tongue.
• Predicative use:
  • The plant's appendages are filiform.
  • The bacterial colony appeared filiform in its growth pattern.

Advanced Usage

• "Filiform" can be used metaphorically in literary or descriptive writing to evoke an image of extreme thinness and length.
  • The morning fog dissipated into filiform tendrils.

Variants and Related Words

• Filament (n): A very fine, thread-like object or fiber.
  • A tungsten filament glows inside the light bulb.
• Filamentous (adj): Consisting of or resembling filaments; thread-like.
  • The algae had a filamentous structure.

Synonyms

• Threadlike
• Filamentous
• Capillary (when referring to very fine tubes)
• Attenuated (in some technical contexts)

Antonyms

• Tubular (hollow and cylindrical, not solid and thread-like)
• Broad
• Stout
• Bulbous

Related Phrases / Compound Terms

• Filiform papilla: A type of small, thread-like projection on the tongue.
• Filiform corrosion: A type of corrosion that propagates in a thread-like manner under coatings.
• Filiform leaf: A leaf that is long, slender, and thread-like.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. thin in diameter; resembling a thread

Từ đồng nghĩa

• filamentous
• filamentlike
• threadlike
• thready