amplexus

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A form of pseudocopulation, found chiefly in amphibians and horseshoe crabs, in which a male grasps a female with his front legs as part of the mating process.
  2. In vernation, the situation where two sides of one leaf overlap the two sides of the one above it.

Word forms

amplexus

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Latin amplexus (“embrace”).

Synonyms

amplection//amplexion amplexation
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