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Webster 1913 Edition


Chela


Che′la

,
Noun.
;
pl.
Chelæ
(#)
.
[NL., fr. Gr.
χηλή
claw.]
(Zool.)
The pincherlike claw of Crustacea and Arachnida.

Definition 2024


chela

chela

See also: chëla

English

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkilə/

Noun

chela (plural chelae)

  1. A pincer-like claw of a crustacean or arachnid.
    • 1646, Sir Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica, III.5:
      It happeneth often, I confess, that a lobster hath the chely or great claw of one side longer than the other [...].
    • 1993, The Encyclopedia of Land Invertebrate Behaviour, p. 232:
      The tail is curved up over the body and the pedipalps held forwards with the tip of the movable finger of the chela in contact with the sand.
    • 2004, Raymond T. Bauer, Remarkable Shrimps: Adaptations and Natural History of the Carideans, page 26,
      The two brushes on each chela snap open into semicircular fans, forming fine-mesh baskets that passively filter water.
Derived terms
Translations

Etymology 2

Borrowing from Hindi चेला (celā).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈt͡ʃei.lə/

Noun

chela (plural chelas or chele)

  1. A pupil or disciple, especially in Hinduism.
    • 1987, Phirozshah Dorabji Mehta, The Heart of Religion, page 36,
      The guru had insight. He understood his chela. The relationship between a guru and his chela was as a father to a son, as a whole person to a whole person, individual and unique.
    • 2002, Warrior of Light: The Life of Nicholas Roerich: Artist, Himalayan Explorer, and Visionary, page 52,
      The guru-chela relationship was a theme in many of Nicholas's paintings. In Pearl of Searching, the guru is looking thoughtfully at a pearl necklace with his chela. This symbolizes the "pearl of great price" that gives purpose to life.
    • 2007, Michael Bertiaux, The Voudon Gnostic Workbook: Expanded Edition, page 455,
      This, of course, is done by the guru as the result of a long process in which his consciousness must merge with that of the chela and wherein the chela is absorbed essentially into the guru.

Anagrams


Italian

Etymology

From Latin chele, from Ancient Greek χηλή (khēlḗ).

Noun

chela f (plural chele)

  1. pincer (of a crustacean)

Ladin

Adjective

chela

  1. feminine singular of chel

Spanish

Adjective

chela

  1. (Central America, slang) feminine singular of chelo

Noun

chela f (plural chelas, masculine chelo)

  1. (Central America, slang) feminine equivalent of chelo; blonde, fair-skinned, blue-eyed

Noun

chela f (plural chelas)

  1. (Mexico, slang) beer
    Vamos a chupar unas chelas. ― Let's go drink some beers.

Synonyms