cornea

/ˈkɔrniə/

/ˈkɔniə/

Other forms: corneas; corneae

Your cornea is part of your eyeball — specifically, it's the clear layer that covers your whole iris and pupil.

Without a cornea (or two), you wouldn't be able to see. This transparent dome focuses light as it passes through, as well as protecting the rest of the eye from injury. If you've ever gotten a little scratch on your eyeball, that's called a corneal abrasion and it usually heals itself quickly. The Latin root of cornea means "horn-like web or sheath," from an ancient Greek belief that it resembled a thin slice of an animal's horn.

Definitions of cornea

1. noun

   the transparent dome-shaped anterior portion of the outer covering of the eye; it covers the iris and pupil and is continuous with the sclera
   types:

   arcus, arcus senilis

   a whitish deposit in the shape of an arc that is sometimes seen in the cornea

   type of:

   membrane, tissue layer

   a pliable sheet of tissue that covers or lines or connects the organs or cells of animals or plants