Library / English Dictionary

EPIDERMIS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

The outer layer of the skin covering the exterior body surface of vertebrates

Synonyms:

cuticle; epidermis

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("epidermis" is a kind of...):

stratum (one of several parallel layers of material arranged one on top of another (such as a layer of tissue or cells in an organism or a layer of sedimentary rock))

Meronyms (parts of "epidermis"):

epidermal cell (any of the cells making up the epidermis)

corneum; horny layer; stratum corneum (the outermost layer of the epidermis consisting of dead cells that slough off)

stratum lucidum (the layer of epidermis immediately under the stratum corneum in the skin of the palms and soles)

stratum granulosum (the layer of epidermis just under the stratum corneum or (on the palms and soles) just under the stratum lucidum; contains cells (with visible granules) that die and move to the surface)

malpighian layer; rete Malpighii; stratum basale; stratum germinativum (the innermost layer of the epidermis)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "epidermis"):

mantle; pallium ((zoology) a protective layer of epidermis in mollusks or brachiopods that secretes a substance forming the shell)

Holonyms ("epidermis" is a part of...):

cutis; skin; tegument (a natural protective body covering and site of the sense of touch)

Derivation:

epidermal; epidermic (of or relating to a cuticle or cuticula)

Credits

 Context examples: 

The upper portion of the dermis beneath the epidermis.

(Papillary dermis, NCI Thesaurus)

A peeling off or loss of epidermis, as in sunburn, postscarlatinal peeling, or toxic epidermal necrolysis.

(Peeling, NCI Thesaurus)

Skin cancer that forms in the lower part of the epidermis (the outer layer of the skin) or in squamous cells, but not in melanocytes (skin cells that make pigment).

(Nonmelanoma skin cancer, NCI Dictionary)

Abnormal cells are found in the squamous cell or basal cell layer of the epidermis (topmost layer of the skin).

(Nonmelanoma carcinoma in situ, NCI Dictionary)

The sweat then seeps into the epidermis, producing pruritic erythematous papulovesicles.

(Miliaria, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

The part of the epidermis layer of the skin containing Langerhans cells, which are dendritic, MHC class II-expressing antigen presenting cells.

(Murine Stratum Spinosum, NCI Thesaurus)

Breslow thickness is measured from the granular layer of the epidermis, or the ulcer base (if ulcerated), to the deepest tumor cells.

(Breslow thickness, NCI Thesaurus)

Melanoma that has spread from the epidermis (outer layer of skin) down into the papillary dermis (the thin top layer of the dermis).

(Clark Level II, NCI Dictionary)

A neoplastic proliferation of basal cells in the epidermis (part of the skin) or other anatomic sites (most frequently the salivary glands).

(Basal Cell Neoplasm, NCI Thesaurus)

A small, round cell found in the lower part (or base) of the epidermis, the outer layer of the skin.

(Basal cell, NCI Dictionary)