Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.

Definition: Spine |
SpineNoun1. The series of vertebrae forming the axis of the skeleton and protecting the spinal cord; "the fall broke his back". 2. Any pointed projection. 3. A sharp-pointed tip on a stem or leaf. 4. A sharp rigid animal process or appendage; as a porcupine quill or a ridge on a bone or a ray of a fish fin. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "spine" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1050. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Electrical Engineering | The function of a duck's back-bone is to provide a reference by connecting it to waves of opposite phase. Source: European Union. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Spine is a word with several related uses. People often talk about a mountain range or a continent having a 'spine'. Its major use however, is to refer to the column of vertebrae which form the backbone of all vertebrate organismss, supporting the body and protecting the spinal cord from damage.See the following entries for more specific details:
- spine (anatomy)
- spine (biology)
- spine (cellular neuroanatomy)
The spine of a book is the part where the edges of all pages, or the creases of all folded sheets, are joined together.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Spine."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
The spine of a vertebrate is the vertebral column. It is divided, in most land mammals, into five sections: the cervical (neck) section, the thoracic section, the lumbar section, the sacrum, and the tail or coccyx.The topmost vertebrae of the spine are the Axis and the atlas. These are specially adapted to allow a full range of movement for the skull.
The spine serves two major purposes - firstly, it gives the skeleton its strength by supporting the back, and secondly, it protects the vital spinal cord from damage.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Spine (anatomy)."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
A spine is a rigid, pointed surface protrubance, sometimes used to provide a defensive mechanism against attack. For example, the quills of a porcupine, the needles of a cactus, or the thorns of a shrub. They can contain poisons, some of which can cause paralysis.Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Spine (biology)."
Synonyms: SpineSynonyms: back (n), backbone (n), pricker (n), prickle (n), rachis (n), spinal column (n), spur (n), sticker (n), thorn (n), vertebral column (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Courage | Manliness, manhood; nerve, pluck, mettle, game; heart, heart of grace; spunk, guts, face, virtue, hardihood, intestinal fortitude; firmness; (stability); heart of oak; bottom, backbone, spine; (perseverance) a. resolution; (determination); bulldog courage. |
Sharpness | Point, spike, spine, spicule, spiculum; needle, hypodermic needle, tack, nail, pin; prick, prickle; spur, rowel, barb; spit, cusp; horn, antler; snag; tag thorn, bristle; Adam's needle, bear grass, tine, yucca. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | The men of Rock are known to be brittle at the spine. (Shadow Raiders; writing credit: Christy Marx; Katherine Lawrence) Ironically, I severed his spine when I fell on him. (Family Guy; writing credit: Dolores Payás) The rine in spine sties minely in the pline (My Fair Lady; writing credit: George Bernard Shaw; Alan Jay Lerner) Lord, place the steel of the Holy Spirit in my spine and the love of the Virgin Mary in my heart (Gangs of New York; writing credit: Jay Cocks) The shockwave from one of these explosions could snap your spine. (U-571; writing credit: Jonathan Mostow) | |
Lyrics | Brush up against me i get chills all down my spine (Sexual (Li Da Di); performing artist: Amber) I get the chills up and down my spine (Play; performing artist: Jennifer Lopez) Icy fingers up and down my spine ("That Old Black Magic"; performing artist: Louis Prima & Keely Smith) And inviting me to that tingle in yo spine (So Fresh, So Clean; performing artist: Outkast) Magenta feelings take up shelter in the base of my spine (I Want You; performing artist: Savage Garden) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Rose e spine (1914) Spine (1986) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Periodicals | |
Theater & Movies | |
Music |
|
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
![]() | Photo #1.Cross-section of first spine of dorsal fin of young bluefin tuna showing annual growth rings. These rings are similar to tree growth rings. The wide (brown) areas represent summer growth during periods of high food intake. The narrow (white) bands represent periods of less fast growth during the winter when the fish's metabolism slows. Credit: Fisheries. | ![]() | Cross-section of first spine of dorsal fin of a one-year old bluefin tuna. This image is greatly magnified. Credit: Fisheries. |
![]() | [Endpages, a spine, and a cover of stacked books]. Credit: National Library of Medicine. | ![]() | Child afflicted with tuberculosis of the spine in cast on porch of his home near Warner, Oklahoma. Tenant farm family. Credit: Library of Congress. |
![]() | Books. Spine of book entitled Tomorrow morning. Credit: Library of Congress. | ||
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
![]() | ![]() |
| "Backbone" by Kevin Walsh Commentary: "Reassembled ribs and spine of an Asiatic two-horned rhino (honest!)." | "X-ray01" by Taya Botha Commentary: "Spine scan." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. | |
| Play | Caption |
| Crack; pop; adjusting; adjustment; chiropractor; chiropractic; spine; spinal; bones; bone; . | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Author | Quotation |
Ralph Waldo Emerson | The best lightning rod for your protection is your own spine. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | His moral spine leaned upon that firmness |
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man | Joyce, James | A gradual warmth, a languorous weariness passed over him, descending along his spine from his closely cowled head |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Osteoarthritis of the spine, hips, or knees. (references) | |
The doctor may take x-rays of the skull and spine. (references) | ||
One common cause of sciatica is a herniated disc (see Spine Basics in the Appendix). (references) | ||
Human Rights | South Africa | One person was shot in the spine, and another woman died of her injuries in the hospital 3 days after the incident. (references) |
Syria | Former prisoners and detainees report that torture methods include administering electrical shocks; pulling out fingernails; forcing objects into the rectum; beating, sometimes while the victim is suspended from the ceiling; hyperextending the spine; and using a chair that bends backwards to asphyxiate the victim or fracture the victim's spine. (references) | |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | EXCESS, n. In morals, an indulgence that enforces by appropriate penalties the law of moderation. Hail, high Excess -- especially in wine, To thee in worship do I bend the knee Who preach abstemiousness unto me -- My skull thy pulpit, as my paunch thy shrine. Precept on precept, aye, and line on line, Could ne'er persuade so sweetly to agree With reason as thy touch, exact and free, Upon my forehead and along my spine. At thy command eschewing pleasure's cup, With the hot grape I warm no more my wit; When on thy stool of penitence I sit I'm quite converted, for I can't get up. Ungrateful he who afterward would falter To make new sacrifices at thine altar! |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Spine" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 97.06% of the time. "Spine" is used about 883 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 97.06% | 857 | 8,245 |
| Noun (proper) | 1.92% | 17 | 85,106 |
| Lexical Verb (base form) | 0.68% | 6 | 143,867 |
| Lexical Verb (infinitive) | 0.34% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 883 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| The following table summarizes the usage of "spine" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified. |
| Name | Usage/Gender | Usage per 100 million Persons | Rank in USA |
| Spine | Last name | 130 | 67,628 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits. | |||
Expressions using "spine": cleft spine ♦ curvature of the spine ♦ dorsal spine ♦ fish's spine ♦ iliac spine ♦ ischial spine ♦ kissing spine ♦ nasal spine ♦ railway spine ♦ spine rachis ♦ spine road ♦ spine robot ♦ spine wagon ♦ telltale spine ♦ trochlear spine. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "spine": spine-bending, spine-bone, spine-chiller, spine-chilling, Spine-finned, spine-like, Spine-snapper, spine-snapping, spine-stretching, Spine-tailed, Spine-tailed swift, spine-thrilling, spine-tinglers, spine-tingling, spine-tinglingly, spine-tipped, spine-toad, spine-toothed. | |
Ending with "spine": tail-spine. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day | Expression | Frequency per Day |
spine | 962 | spine fusion | 33 |
cervical spine | 182 | spine disease | 31 |
spine picture | 150 | spine disorder | 30 |
lumbar spine | 127 | spine problem | 30 |
spine surgery | 99 | spine tumor | 28 |
human spine | 83 | minimally invasive spine surgery | 28 |
carolines spine | 81 | stenosis of the spine | 26 |
arthritis of the spine | 67 | cervical spine surgery | 26 |
thoracic spine | 63 | back and spine | 24 |
spine health.com | 60 | spine institute | 24 |
spine anatomy | 60 | degenerative spine disease | 24 |
spine cancer | 58 | spine universe | 23 |
curvature of the spine | 46 | cervical spine injury | 23 |
spine journal | 42 | spine shank | 22 |
north american spine society | 40 | c spine | 22 |
spine surgeon | 39 | spine pain | 20 |
diagram spine | 39 | narrowing of the spine | 20 |
spine health | 38 | anatomy cervical spine | 18 |
spine injury | 37 | curved spine | 17 |
spine center | 36 | fusion invasive minimally spine | 17 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Translations for "spine"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | shtyllë kurrizore (backbone), shpinë (back, backing, rake, rear), lurriz, gjemb (barb, blackthorn, pricker, prickle, sticker, thorn). (various references) | |
Arabic | قمة جبل (pinnacle, ridge, summit, top), عقبة (barricade, block, blockade, bunker, difficulty, drawback, hitch, hurdle, inconvenience, interference, jam, obstacle, obstruction, snag, stick, stumbling block), العمود الفقري (back bone, backbone, vertebral column), ظهر الكتاب, شوكة (backbone, barb, fang, goad, pricket, prickle, spur, thorn). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | трън (prick, prickle, thorn), шип (barb, calk, ferrule, journal, nib, prick, prickle, rough, spur, thorn), гръбначен стълб (spinal column, vertebrae, vertebral column), гръбнак (backbone), остър тънък костен израстък, бодил (prick, prickle, thorn), игла (aiguille, needle, pin, prick, pricker, quill). (various references) | |
Chinese | 背骨 , 脊椎 (Chine), 脊 (back, ridge), 椎 (a hammer). (various references) | |
Czech | páteř (backbone, ridge, vertebrae). (various references) | |
Danish | rygrad (backbone). (various references) | |
Dutch | wervelkolom (backbone, spinal column, vertebral column), ruggegraat (backbone, solid, vertebral column), spin (spider). (various references) | |
Esperanto | spino, vertebraro, vertebra kolono. (various references) | |
Faeroese | ryggur (back). (various references) | |
Farsi | مهره های پشت , تیغ یابرامدگی های بدن موجودات , تیره پشت , ستون فقرات (Backbone). (various references) | |
Finnish | selkäranka (backbone, spinal column), piikki (barb, fling, prick, prickle, prong, spike, sting, taunt, thorn, tooth). (various references) | |
French | colonne vertébrale (spinal column), épine (spina), dos. (various references) | |
Frisian | rêchbonke. (various references) | |
German | Rückgrat (backbone, grit, spinal), Wirbelsäule (spinal column), Stachel (barb, goad, Pike, prick, prickle, quill, Spike, spur, sting, thorn), Rücken (back, backs, crest, hitch, Mount, move, move on, move over, move up, push, ridge, saddle, thrust), Dorn (arbor, prick, prickle, Spike, thorn). (various references) | |
Greek | σπονδυλική στήλη (backbone, vertebral columm), αγκάθι (prickle, thistle, thorn). (various references) | |
Hebrew | מחט (needle, pin), שזרה (backbone), קוץ (acantha, Spike, thistle, thorn), עמוד השדרה (back bone, spinal column), עוקץ (acantha, barb, briar, mordant, point, pointed, sarcasm, sting, tip). (various references) | |
Hungarian | gerinc (backbone, crest, keel, ridge, saddle, stagnation, trough, web), tüske (barb, beard, bristle, bur, burr, dolly, prick, pricker, prickle, Spike, thorn), tövis (drift, mandrel, mandril, prick, pricker, prickle, thorn), hátgerinc (backbone, vertebrae). (various references) | |
Indonesian | duri (barb, bur, fish bone, prickle, thorn). (various references) | |
Italian | spina dorsale (back, backbone, Chine, spinal column), spina (bone, fishbone, jack, jumper, male, male connector, plug, prick, prickle, tap, thorn), dorso (back). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 背骨 (backbone), 脊椎 (vertebral column), 棘 (biting words, briars, splinter, the bush, thicket, thorn), 刺 (biting words, calling card, splinter, thorn). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | せきつい (vertebral column), せぼね (backbone), いら (biting words, splinter, thorn), とげ (biting words, splinter, thorn). (various references) | |
Korean | 등뼈 (backbone). (various references) | |
Manx | craue drommey (backbone, spinal column). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | inespay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | espinha (acne, pimple), coluna vertebral (chine). (various references) | |
Romanian | spin (thorn), miez (core, essence, heart, juice, kernel, knot, marrow, meat, pulp), fond (background, bottom, content, elements, essence, field, fund, gist, ground, groundwork, gut, matter, staple, stock, substance, sum, supply), creastã (aigrette, back, brow, comb, coping, crest, edge, height, hogback, knoll, razor edge, ridge, top, tuft), coloanã vertebralã (spinal column, vertebral column), şira spinãrii (backbone, Chine), ţeapã (bristle, goad, pale, quill, sliver, splinter, thorn). (various references) | |
Russian | позвоночник (backbone, rachis, spines, vertebrae). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | kičma (backbone), greben planine, bodlja (barb, pricker, quill, thorn). (various references) | |
Shona | muzongoza. (various references) | |
Spanish | espina dorsal (backbone), espina (bone, doubt, fishbone, prickle, splinter, thorn), lomo (back, backbone, loin). (various references) | |
Swedish | ryggrad (backbone, Chine, spinal column), törne (thorn, thorn bush), Rygg (back, Chine, ridge). (various references) | |
Turkish | sürgün (banishment, bud, deportation, deportee, exile, expatriation, expellee, growth, ostracism, outgrowth, outlaw, outlawry, proscription, relegation, shoot, spray, sprout, tiller, transport, transportation, twig), omurga (backbone, Carina, Chine, keel, rachis, spinal coloumn, vertebrae, vertebral column), kitap sırtı (back), kılçık (awn, bone, fishbone, fish's spine, string), irade (fiat, freedom, pleasure, self control, volition, will, willpower), iğne (brooch, injection, jab, needle, pin, pintle, pointer, prick, shot, spicule, sting, stinger), filiz (bud, burgeon, button, cion, growth, offshoot, ore, outgrowth, rod, shoot, spray, sprig, sprout, tendril, tiller), diken (barb, briar, brier, prick, pricker, prickle, quill, spicule, thorn, thornbush, thorny plant, trichome), belkemiği (back, backbone, basis, Chine, rachis, spinal, spinal coloumn, vertebral column), belkemíğí. (various references) | |
Turkmen | oсurga, яagyrny (back), geriю (back). (various references) | |
Ukrainian | хребет (edge, ridge, vertebrae), голка (needle, prickle), виступ (address, appearance, corbel, gibbosity, jut, ledge, nib, offset, overhang, projection, promontory, protrusion, salience, salient, shoulder, snag, teat, ward). (various references) | |
Yucatec | t'o'ol a pach. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Sumerian | 3100 BCE-2500 BCE | 1. edin. (various references) |
| Greek | 700 BCE-300 CE | rhakhis. (various references) |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | aculei, spina, spinae, spinam, spinarum, spinas, spinis. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "spine": spined, spinel, spineless, spinelessly, spinelessness, spinelessnesses, spinelike, spinelle, spinelles, spinels, spines, spinet, spinets. (additional references) | |
Words ending with "spine": vespine. (additional references) | |
Words containing "spine": crispiness, crispinesses, wispiness, wispinesses. (additional references) | |
| |
"Spine" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: aspine, epine, espine, Ospina, saine, sepina, Sgine, sinqe, skine, sline, smine, spanel, spanne, Spano, spie, spind, spinde, spinea, spinee, spinel, spiney, spinia, spinna, spinnen, spinx, spone, sponte, spuen, spunee, spyn, stine, svine. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "spine" (pronounced spī"n) |
| 3 | -p ī" n | opine, pine, supine. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
Direct Anagrams: peins, penis, pines, snipe. | |
| Words within the letters "e-i-n-p-s" | |
-1 letter: nips, pein, pens, pies, pine, pins, sine, sipe, snip, spin. | |
-2 letters: ens, ins, nip, pen, pes, pie, pin, pis, psi, sei, sen, sin, sip. | |
-3 letters: en, es, in, is, ne, pe, pi, si. | |
| Words containing the letters "e-i-n-p-s" | |
+1 letter: genips, instep, mispen, opines, pekins, pennis, pensil, pepsin, ponies, puisne, repins, ripens, sniped, sniper, snipes, spined, spinel, spines, spinet, spline, supine. | |
+2 letters: alpines, crispen, dipnets, dispend, emptins, epigons, epinaos, epsilon, erepsin, espying, hipness, impends, impones, incepts, inphase, inscape, inspect, inspire, insteps, inswept, lineups, lippens, lupines, mispens, nappies, nippers, nipples, orpines, paesani, pandies, paniers, pansies, panties, patines, pectins, peising, pencils, penises, pennies, pensile, pensils, pension, pensive, peonies, peonism, pepsine, pepsins, phonies, pigeons, pigpens, pigsney, pilsner, pincers, pinches, pinders, pineals, pinenes, pinesap, pingers, pingoes, piniest, pinites, pinkens, pinkers, pinkest, pinkeys, pinkies, pinkoes, pinners, pinnies, pinoles, pinones, pintles, pintoes, piscine, plenish, plenism, plenist, pointes, princes, pterins, puisnes, puniest, punkies, punties, purines, rapines, repines, sapiens, sapient, seeping, senopia, shipmen, shippen, sinopie, snipers, snipped, snipper, snippet, spaeing, spaniel, spewing, sphenic, spinage, spinate, spindle, spinels, spinets, spinier, spinner, spinney, spinose, spinule, splenia, splenic, splenii, splined, splines, springe, spunkie, stipend, supines, tenpins, tiepins, unpiles, uprisen, vespine, winesop. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Images: Digital Art | 9. Sounds 10. Quotations: Familiar 11. Quotations: Fiction 12. Quotations: Non-fiction | 13. Usage Frequency 14. Names: Frequency 15. Expressions 16. Expressions: Internet | 17. Translations: Modern 18. Translations: Ancient 19. Derivations 20. Rhymes | 21. Anagrams 22. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.