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Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
cuticle
noun
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Conditioner helps to make split ends less noticeable because it smooths the cuticles down and improves hair appearance.
▪ Here the cuticle becomes infolded and is membranous in character.
▪ It will also help strengthen nails and moisturise cuticles.
▪ On the emergence of the adult the wing is inflated to its full size by blood-pressure and the cuticle hardens.
▪ The golden iridescence of Cassida and its allies is produced by a film of moisture beneath the surface cuticle.
▪ These form a layer at or near the surface or are incorporated into inner layers of the cuticle.
▪ They are rigidly connected with the cuticle, having no membranous articulation and are therefore readily separable from cuticular appendages.
▪ This allowed the cuticles, which protect the nail bed from infection, to soften.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Cuticle

Cuticle \Cu"ti*cle\ (k[=u]"t[i^]*k'l), n. [L. cuticula, dim. of cutis skin; akin to E. hide skin of an animal.]

  1. (Anat.) The scarfskin or epidermis. See Skin.

  2. (Bot.) The outermost skin or pellicle of a plant, found especially in leaves and young stems.

  3. A thin skin formed on the surface of a liquid.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
cuticle

1610s, from Latin cuticula, diminutive of cutis "skin," from PIE *ku-ti-, from root *(s)keu- "to cover, conceal" (cognates: Lithuanian kiautas "husk," Old English hyd "skin, hide;" see hide (n.1)). Specialized sense of "skin at the base of the nail" is from 1907. Related: Cuticular.

Wiktionary
cuticle

n. 1 The outermost layer of the skin of vertebrates; the epidermis. 2 The strip of hardened skin at the base and sides of a fingernail or toenail. 3 Dead or cornified epidermis. 4 (context zoology botany English) A noncellular protective covering outside the epidermis of many invertebrates and plants. 5 A thin skin formed on the surface of a liquid.

WordNet
cuticle
  1. n. the outer layer of the skin covering the exterior body surface of vertebrates [syn: epidermis]

  2. hard outer covering or case of certain organisms such as arthropods and turtles [syn: carapace, shell]

Wikipedia
Cuticle (disambiguation)

Cuticle, or cuticula (Latin for "covering"), may refer to:

  • Plant cuticle, or cuticula, a waxy polymeric film covering all aerial plant surfaces
  • Cuticle (nail), in human anatomy, the fold of skin at the proximal end of the nail
  • Cuticula (invertebrate), the outside of the epidermis of many invertebrates
  • Enamel cuticle, a covering of the crown of a newly erupted tooth, quickly destroyed by chewing
  • Cuticle (hair), or cuticula pili, a layer of overlapping cells that surround the hair cortex and lock the hair shaft in its follicle
Cuticle

A cuticle , or cuticula, is a term used for any of a variety of tough but flexible, non-mineral outer coverings of an organism, or parts of an organism, that provide protection. Various types of "cuticle" are non- homologous, differing in their origin, structure, function, and chemical composition.

Cuticle (hair)

The hair cuticle is the outermost part of the hair shaft. It is formed from dead cells, overlapping in layers, which form scales that gives the hair shaft strength and provide protection for it. Although the cuticle is the outermost layer of the hair, it does not give the hair its color because it has no melanin, which is the pigment responsible; the color of a person's hair depends on what type of melanin they have, which is found in the cortex.

Usage examples of "cuticle".

A bruise may be distinguished from a post-mortem stain by the cuticle in the former often being abraded and raised.

The leaves of the Buttercup, when bruised and applied to the skin, produce a blistering of the outer cuticle, with a discharge of a watery fluid, and with heat, redness, and swelling.

It consists of two layers, termed the Cutis Vera, or true skin, and the Epidermis, or cuticle.

It is easily distinguished by the dull green pileus, being without a cuticle, and scaly in the form of patches.

The pustules contain serous lymph, which exudes if the cuticle be broken, and forms a crust at the summit of the pustule.

The unkempt, bespeckled individual sitting in the chair in the corner with his shoulders hunched was gnawing on his index finger cuticle as though it were going to be his last meal.

Max sat down again at the small manicurist table, then picked up an orangewood stick to push back her cuticles.

Knowing she was caught, Faith studied her cuticles and gave a pouty little yawn.

Our specimen was 5 inches broad, and the margin slightly striate, and when the cuticle was removed it was purplish underneath.

Excretory ducts uniting to form a tube which tortuously perforates the cuticle at 3, and opens obliquely on its surface at 4.

I was about to say I did too know about extremophiles, and even had my own experiment going with the UV-protective cuticle on frost flowers, but Dr.

Max sat down again at the small manicurist table, then picked up an orangewood stick to push back her cuticles.

It stuck out awkwardly, and Marghe had to wrestle it into the slick black plastic bag: she noticed that two fingernails were broken, that Foster had chewed her cuticles, that there was a pale band of skin around the wrist where she had worn her wristcom.

The Arab tipped his head onto his shoulder and grinned apologetically at Starr, who examined his cuticles with deep interest.

How came it that the wounds were so superficial that they barely went deeper than the cuticle, while devils are known to rend and tear demoniacs when leaving them, if it were not that the superior did not hate herself enough to inflict deep and dangerous wounds?