[ 'reɪkɪs ]
(also rhachis )
■ noun ( plural rachides -kɪdi:z )
1》 Botany a stem of a grass or other plant bearing flower stalks at short intervals.
↘the midrib of a compound leaf or frond.
2》 Anatomy the vertebral column, or the cord from which it develops.
3》 Ornithology the shaft of a feather.
Origin
C18: mod. L., from Gk rhakhis 'spine'; the Engl. plural -ides is by false analogy.