The Collaborative International Dictionary
Cephalic \Ce*phal"ic\, a. [L. cephalicus, Gr. ?, fr. kefalh` head: cf. F. c['e]phalique.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the head. See the Note under Anterior.
Cephalic index (Anat.), the ratio of the breadth of the cranium to the length, which is taken as the standard, and equal to 100; the breadth index.
Cephalic vein, a large vein running from the back of the
head alond the arm; -- so named because the ancients used
to open it for disorders of the head.
--Dunglison.
WordNet
n. ratio (in percent) of the maximum breadth to the maximum length of a skull [syn: breadth index, cranial index]
Wikipedia
The cephalic index or cranial index is the ratio of the maximum width of the head of an organism (human or animal) multiplied by 100 divided by its maximum length (i.e., in the horizontal plane, or front to back). The index is also used to categorize animals, especially dogs and cats.
Usage examples of "cephalic index".
Given his prints and cephalic index Interpol in Paris will identify him within the hour.
Could be any of four others under alias, but unlikely: identification impossible without cephalic index and fingerprints.
Beside each name Mr Flawse put the age of the candidate, the colour of his eyes and hair, his features, height and, where possible, his cephalic index.
Turk and the boys tried to listen, but were soon lost in a maze of such scientific matters as the cephalic index, language roots, Mongoloid folds, and so on.
The cephalic index seems to be about the same as that of the famous Caledonian knothead tribe.