branchia

2 definitions found

branchia - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Branchia \Bran"chi*a\, n.; pl. Branchi[ae]. [L., fr. Gr. ?,
     pl. of ?.] (Anat.)
     A gill; a respiratory organ for breathing the air contained
     in water, such as many aquatic and semiaquatic animals have.
     [1913 Webster]

branchia - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  branchia
      n 1: respiratory organ of aquatic animals that breathe oxygen
           dissolved in water [syn: gill, branchia]