/tray"kee euh/ or, esp. Brit., /treuh kee"euh/ , n. , pl. tracheae /tray"kee ee'/ or, esp. Brit., /treuh kee"ee/ , tracheas .
1. Anat. , Zool. the tube in humans and other air-breathing vertebrates extending from the larynx to the bronchi, serving as the principal passage for conveying air to and from the lungs; the windpipe. See diag. under lung .
2. (in insects and other arthropods) one of the air-conveying tubes of the respiratory system.
3. Bot. vessel (def. 5).
[ 1350-1400; ME trache trachea, for LL trachia tracheîa, short for artería tracheîa rough artery, i.e., windpipe ]