coma
coma (kō′mə)
noun
- deep, prolonged unconsciousness caused by injury or disease
- a condition of stupor or lethargy
Etymology: ModL < Gr kōma (gen. kōmatos), deep sleep < IE base *keme-, to grow tired > Sans śamītē, to work, prepare, Gr kamatos, fatigue, effort
coma (kō′mə)
noun pl. comae -·mae (-mē)
- Astron. a comet's gaseous cloud surrounding the solid nucleus and forming, with the nucleus, the comet's head
- a bunch of branches, as on the top of some palm trees
- a terminal cluster of bracts on a flowering stem, as in pineapples
- a tuft of hairs at the end of certain seeds
- Photog. a blur caused by the spherical aberration of oblique rays of light passing through a lens
Etymology: L, hair of the head, foliage < Gr komē, hair
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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