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Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Taxis

Taxis \Tax"is\, n. [NL., fr. Gr. ta`xis a division or arrangement, fr. ta`ssein to arrange.]

  1. (Surg.) Manipulation applied to a hernial tumor, or to an intestinal obstruction, for the purpose of reducing it.
    --Dunglison.

  2. In technical uses, as in architecture, biology, grammar, etc., arrangement; order; ordonnance.

  3. a reflexive movement by a motile organism by which it moves or orients itself in relation to some source of stimulation; as, chemotaxis, the motion toward or away from gradients of certain chemical compounds.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
taxis

"operation whereby displaced parts are put back in their natural situation," 1758, medical Latin, from Greek taxis "arrangement, an arranging, the order or disposition of an army, battle array; order, regularity," verbal noun of tassein "arrange," from PIE root *tag- "to set aright, set in order" (see tangent).

Wiktionary
taxis

Etymology 1 n. 1 (context biology English) The directional movement of an organism in response to a stimulus. 2 (context medicine English) The manipulation of a body part into its normal position after injury. 3 (context rhetoric English) The arrangement of the parts of a topic. 4 arrangement or ordering generally, as in architecture or grammar Etymology 2

alt. (plural of taxi English) n. (plural of taxi English)

WordNet
taxis
  1. n. a locomotor response toward or away from an external stimulus by a motile (and usually simple) organism

  2. the surgical procedure of manually restoring a displaced body part

Wikipedia
Taxis

A taxis (plural taxes , from the Ancient Greek , meaning "arrangement") is the movement of an organism in response to a stimulus such as light or the presence of food. Taxes are innate behavioral responses. A taxis differs from a tropism (turning response, often growth towards or away from a stimulus) in that the organism has motility and demonstrates guided movement towards or away from the stimulus source. It is sometimes distinguished from a kinesis, a non-directional change in activity in response to a stimulus.

Usage examples of "taxis".

Paris in an infinite number of petty questions as to tenants, abutters, liabilities, taxes, repairs, sweepings, decorations for the Fete-Dieu, waste-pipes, lighting, projections over the public way, and the neighborhood of unhealthy buildings.

Sword has exempted the transaction from taxes in order to accelerate the buy-out.

Carthage was condemned to pay within the term of fifty years, were a slight acknowledgment of the superiority of Rome, and cannot bear the least proportion with the taxes afterwards raised both on the lands and on the persons of the inhabitants, when the fertile coast of Africa was reduced into a province.

The most wealthy families ruined by partial fines and confiscations, and the great body of his subjects oppressed by ingenious and aggravated taxes.

But they paid their taxes to us, albeit with complaining, and we had to discipline them only occasionally, so we managed.

There was a shortage of taxis and we suppose Bunchy had walked so far, hoping to pick one up in a side street, when this fellow came along.

All buses were off the streets, no underground trains running and no taxis were available.

There had been no noise loud enough to hear above the general traffic, the diesel buses and taxis.