■ noun technical
1》 a point in a network at which lines intersect or branch.
↘a piece of equipment, such as a computer or peripheral, attached to a network.
↘ Mathematics a point at which a curve intersects itself.
↘ Astronomy either of the two points at which a planet's orbit intersects the plane of the ecliptic or the celestial equator.
2》 Botany the part of a plant stem from which one or more leaves emerge.
3》 Anatomy a lymph ~ or other structure consisting of a small mass of differentiated tissue.
4》 Physics & Mathematics a point at which the amplitude of vibration in a standing wave system is zero.
↘a point of zero current or voltage.
Derivatives
nodal adjective
nodical adjective
Origin
ME (denoting a knotty swelling or a protuberance): from L. nodus 'knot'.