appendage

/əˈpɛndɪdʒ/

Other forms: appendages

Use the noun appendage to describe something that’s attached to something larger. Your arm is an appendage to your body.

Appendage often describes body parts, either on humans or animals. If it’s something that sticks out — like a finger, tail, or leg — chances are it can be called an appendage. The word can also be used figuratively to refer to something that’s associated with something larger or more important, like a husband who’s a mere appendage to his famous wife. In this sense, the word takes on a negative connotation: the appendage is not important.

Definitions of appendage

1. noun

   a part that is joined to something larger
   types:

   appendicle

   a small appendage

   handhold

   an appendage to hold onto

   grip, handgrip, handle, hold

   the appendage to an object that is designed to be held in order to use or move it

   tailpiece

   appendage added to extend the length of something

   ax handle, axe handle

   the handle of an ax

   broom handle, broomstick

   the handle of a broom

   crop

   the stock or handle of a whip

   haft, helve

   the handle of a weapon or tool

   hilt

   the handle of a sword or dagger

   hoe handle

   the handle of a hoe

   knob

   a round handle

   mop handle

   the handle of a mop

   panhandle

   the handle of a pan

   pommel, saddlebow

   handgrip formed by the raised front part of a saddle

   pommel

   a handgrip that a gymnast uses when performing exercises on a pommel horse

   rake handle

   the handle of a rake

   stock

   the handle end of some implements or tools

   gunstock, stock

   the handle of a handgun or the butt end of a rifle or shotgun or part of the support of a machine gun or artillery gun

   type of:

   part, portion

   something less than the whole of a human artifact
2. noun

   a natural prolongation or projection from a part of an organism either animal or plant
   synonyms: outgrowth, process

   types:

   horn

   one of the bony outgrowths on the heads of certain ungulates

   horn

   any hard protuberance from the head of an organism that is similar to or suggestive of a horn

   crest

   a showy growth of e.g. feathers or skin on the head of a bird or other animal

   pseudopod, pseudopodium

   temporary outgrowth used by some microorganisms as an organ of feeding or locomotion

   flagellum

   a lash-like appendage used for locomotion (e.g., in sperm cells and some bacteria and protozoa)

   hair

   a filamentous projection or process on an organism

   cirrus

   a slender flexible animal appendage as on barnacles or crinoids or many insects; often tactile

   spine

   a sharp rigid animal process or appendage; as a porcupine quill or a ridge on a bone or a ray of a fish fin

   aculea

   small spiny outgrowth on the wings of certain insects

   style

   a slender bristlelike or tubular process

   villus

   a minute hairlike projection on mucous membrane

   tail

   the posterior part of the body of a vertebrate especially when elongated and extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body

   fetlock

   projection behind and above a horse's hoof

   tentacle

   any of various elongated tactile or prehensile flexible organs that occur on the head or near the mouth in many animals; used for feeling or grasping or locomotion

   arista

   bristlelike process near the tip of the antenna of certain flies

   acromial process, acromion

   the outermost point of the spine of the shoulder blade

   ala

   a flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism

   alveolar arch

   the part of the upper or lower jawbones in which the teeth are set

   alveolar process, alveolar ridge, gum ridge

   a ridge that forms the borders of the upper and lower jaws and contains the sockets of the teeth

   acrosome

   a process at the anterior end of a sperm cell that produces enzymes to facilitate penetration of the egg

   caruncle, caruncula

   an outgrowth on a plant or animal such as a fowl's wattle or a protuberance near the hilum of certain seeds

   condyle

   a round bump on a bone where it forms a joint with another bone

   coronoid process, processus coronoideus

   a sharp triangular process projecting from a bone

   epicondyle

   a projection on a bone above a condyle serving for the attachment of muscles and ligaments

   fimbria

   thin projections forming a fringe (especially around the ovarian end of the Fallopian tube)

   apophysis

   (anatomy) a natural outgrowth or projection on an organ or body part such as the process of a vertebra

   spicule, spiculum

   small pointed structure serving as a skeletal element in various marine and freshwater invertebrates e.g. sponges and corals

   osteophyte

   small abnormal bony outgrowth

   papilla

   a small projection of tissue at the base of a hair or tooth or feather

   papilla

   a small nipple-shaped protuberance concerned with taste, touch, or smell

   appendix, cecal appendage, vermiform appendix, vermiform process

   a vestigial process that extends from the lower end of the cecum and that resembles a small pouch

   mastoid, mastoid bone, mastoid process, mastoidal

   process of the temporal bone behind the ear at the base of the skull

   styloid process

   extends from the base of the temporal bone

   pterygoid process

   two bony processes descending from the body of the sphenoid bone

   eminence, tubercle, tuberosity

   a protuberance on a bone especially for attachment of a muscle or ligament

   zygomatic process

   a slender process of the temporal bone that strengthens the zygomatic arch

   trochanter

   one of the bony prominences developed near the upper extremity of the femur to which muscles are attached

   transverse process

   one of two processes that extend from each vertebra and provide the point of articulation for the ribs

   odontoid process

   a toothlike process at the back of 2nd vertebra of the neck

   metaphysis

   the growing part of a long bone between the diaphysis and the epiphysis

   olecranon, olecranon process

   process of the ulna that forms the outer bump of the elbow and fits into the fossa of the humerus when the arm is extended

   ridge

   any long raised border or margin of a bone or tooth or membrane

   excrescence

   (pathology) an abnormal outgrowth or enlargement of some part of the body

   papilla

   (botany) a tiny outgrowth on the surface of a petal or leaf

   enation, plant process

   a natural projection or outgrowth from a plant body or organ

   antler

   deciduous horn of a member of the deer family

   tuft

   a bunch of feathers or hair

   topknot

   showy crest or knot of hair or feathers

   chorionic villus

   one of the tiny villi that stick out of the fetal chorion and combine with the mother's uterine tissue to form the placenta

   rattle

   loosely connected horny sections at the end of a rattlesnake's tail

   cockscomb, comb, coxcomb

   the fleshy red crest on the head of the domestic fowl and other gallinaceous birds

   ray

   any of the stiff bony spines in the fin of a fish

   quill

   a stiff hollow protective spine on a porcupine or hedgehog

   stylet

   small needlelike appendage; especially the feeding organ of a tardigrade

   bristle

   a stiff hair

   sensory hair, vibrissa, whisker

   a long stiff hair growing from the snout or brow of most mammals as e.g. a cat

   seta

   a stiff hair or bristle

   pilus

   hairlike structure especially on the surface of a cell or microorganism

   brush

   a bushy tail or part of a bushy tail (especially of the fox)

   bob, bobtail, dock

   a short or shortened tail of certain animals

   caudal appendage

   tail especially of a mammal posterior to and above the anus

   uropygium

   posterior part of a bird's body from which the tail feathers grow

   oxtail

   the skinned tail of cattle; used especially for soups

   fluke

   either of the two lobes of the tail of a cetacean

   scut

   a short erect tail

   flag

   a conspicuously marked or shaped tail

   antenna, feeler

   one of a pair of mobile appendages on the head of e.g. insects and crustaceans; typically sensitive to touch and taste

   barbel, feeler

   slender tactile process on the jaws of a fish

   deltoid eminence, deltoid tuberosity

   a bump on the outside of the humerus where the deltoid muscle attaches

   lappet, wattle

   a fleshy wrinkled and often brightly colored fold of skin hanging from the neck or throat of certain birds (chickens and turkeys) or lizards

   condylar process, condyloid process, mandibular condyle

   the condyle of the ramus of the mandible that articulates with the skull

   coronoid process of the mandible

   the coronoid process that provides an attachment for the temporal muscle

   lateral condyle

   a condyle on the outer side of the lower extremity of the femur

   medial condyle

   a condyle on the inner side of the lower extremity of the femur

   lateral epicondyle

   epicondyle near the lateral condyle of the femur

   superciliary arch, superciliary ridge, supraorbital ridge, supraorbital torus

   a ridge on the frontal bone above the eye socket

   vegetation

   an abnormal growth or excrescence (especially a warty excrescence on the valves of the heart)

   podetium

   an organ or body resembling a stalk; especially the outgrowth of the thallus of certain lichens on which the ascocarp is borne

   peristome

   (botany) fringe of toothlike appendages surrounding the mouth of a moss capsule

   haustorium

   a root-like attachment in parasitic plants that penetrates and obtains food from the host

   apophysis

   (botany) a natural swelling or enlargement: at the base of the stalk or seta in certain mosses or on the cone scale of certain conifers

   callus

   (botany) an isolated thickening of tissue, especially a stiff protuberance on the lip of an orchid

   blister

   (botany) a swelling on a plant similar to that on the skin

   nodule, tubercle

   small rounded wartlike protuberance on a plant

   spur

   tubular extension at the base of the corolla in some flowers

   aculeus

   a stiff sharp-pointed plant process

   acumen

   a tapering point

   fuzz, hair, tomentum

   filamentous hairlike growth on a plant

   leaf node, node

   (botany) the small swelling that is the part of a plant stem from which one or more leaves emerge

   burl

   a large rounded outgrowth on the trunk or branch of a tree

   type of:

   body part

   any part of an organism such as an organ or extremity
3. noun

   an external body part that projects from the body
   synonyms: extremity, member

   types:

   chelicera

   either of the first pair of fang-like appendages near the mouth of an arachnid; often modified for grasping and piercing

   mouthpart

   any part of the mouth of an insect or other arthropod especially one adapted to a specific way of feeding

   fang

   an appendage of insects that is capable of injecting venom; usually evolved from the legs

   chela, claw, nipper, pincer

   a grasping structure on the limb of a crustacean or other arthropods

   parapodium

   one of a pair of fleshy appendages of a polychete annelid that functions in locomotion and breathing

   fin

   organ of locomotion and balance in fishes and some other aquatic animals

   pleopod, swimmeret

   one of the paired abdominal appendages of certain aquatic crustaceans that function primarily for carrying the eggs in females and are usually adapted for swimming

   limb

   one of the jointed appendages of an animal used for locomotion or grasping: arm; leg; wing; flipper

   dactyl, digit

   a finger or toe in human beings or corresponding body part in other vertebrates

   toxicognath

   either of a pair of poison fangs in the modified front pair of legs of the centipede

   hind limb, hindlimb

   a posterior appendage such as a leg or the homologous structure in other animals

   forelimb

   the front limb (or the homologous structure in other animals, such as a flipper or wing)

   flipper

   the flat broad limb of aquatic animals specialized for swimming

   dorsal fin

   unpaired median fin on the backs of fishes and some other aquatic vertebrates that help to maintain balance

   pectoral fin

   either of a pair of fins situated just behind the head in fishes that help control the direction of movement

   pelvic fin, ventral fin

   either of a pair of fins attached to the pelvic girdle in fishes that help control the direction of movement; correspond to hind limbs of a land vertebrate

   caudal fin, tail fin

   the tail of fishes and some other aquatic vertebrates

   leg

   a human limb; commonly used to refer to a whole limb but technically only the part of the limb between the knee and ankle

   crus

   the leg from the knee to foot

   leg

   a structure in animals that is similar to a human leg and used for locomotion

   thigh

   the part of the leg between the hip and the knee

   arm

   a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb

   cubitus

   the arm from the elbow to the fingertips

   forearm

   the part of the superior limb between the elbow and the wrist

   minimus

   the fifth digit; the little finger or little toe

   finger

   any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb)

   toe

   one of the digits of the foot

   mandible

   either of the two mouthparts used by arthropods to hold and bite food

   type of:

   external body part

   any body part visible externally