rudiment
/'ru:dimənt/
Học thuậtThân thiện
A biology student examines the rudiment of a whale's hind limb in a museum display.
Definition
Noun: 1. A basic principle, element, or fundamental skill of a subject: The simplest and most essential facts or parts that must be learned first. 2. (Biology) An undeveloped or vestigial organ or part: A body part that is not fully developed or is a remnant of a structure that was functional in an earlier stage of life.
Examples
- Basic Principle:
- She taught me the rudiments of chess in one afternoon.
- Before writing code, you must understand the rudiments of logic.
- The book explains the rudiments of grammar clearly.
- Vestigial Organ:
- The human appendix is considered a rudiment.
- Some snakes have pelvic bones as rudiments of legs.
Advanced Usage
- "To have/learn the rudiments of (something)": To know or acquire the most basic knowledge or skills in a field.
- He has the rudiments of French but cannot hold a conversation.
- "In its rudiments": In its most basic or earliest form.
- The theory was still in its rudiments when it was first proposed.
Variants and Related Words
- Rudimentary (adjective):
- Basic or elementary: He has only a rudimentary understanding of the process.
- Undeveloped or vestigial: The species has rudimentary wings that are not used for flight.
Synonyms
- Basic principle: Basics, fundamentals, essentials, foundation, ABCs.
- Vestigial organ: Vestige, remnant.
Antonyms
- Basic principle: Advanced concept, complexity, sophistication.
- Vestigial organ: Fully developed organ, functional structure.
A biology student examines the rudiment of a whale's hind limb in a museum display.
Noun
- the remains of a body part that was functional at an earlier stage of life
- Meckel's diverticulum is the rudiment of the embryonic yolk sac
- the elementary stages of any subject (usually plural)
- he mastered only the rudiments of geometry