phalange
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pha·lange
(fā′lănj′, fə-lănj′)n.
See phalanx.
[French, from Old French, body of infantrymen, from Latin, from Greek phalanx, phalang-, log, battle array, bone between the finger and toe joints; see phalanx.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
phalange
(ˈfælændʒ)n, pl phalanges (fæˈlændʒiːz)
(Anatomy) anatomy another name for phalanx5
[C16: via French, ultimately from Greek phalanx]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
pha•lanx
(ˈfeɪ læŋks, ˈfæl æŋks)n., pl. pha•lanx•es for 1-6, pha•lan•ges (fəˈlæn dʒiz for 7.)
1. (in ancient Greece) a group of heavily armed infantry formed in ranks and files close and deep, with shields joined and long spears overlapping.
2. any body of troops in close array.
3. a number of persons united for a common purpose.
4. a compact or closely massed body of persons, animals, or things.
5. (in Fourierism) a group of about 1800 persons, living together and holding their property in common.
6. any of the bones of the fingers or toes.
[1545–55; < Latin < Greek phálanx military formation, bone of finger or toe, wooden roller]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.