[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/prehensile/)

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# prehensile

adjective

«prehensile» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

(science) Prehensile means able to grip, hold or wrap around things, used about a body part such as a tail, foot, trunk or lip. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#m1)

### In the lessons

In science lessons about animal adaptations, a prehensile tail lets monkeys, possums, chameleons and seahorses hang on to branches or plants. An elephant's trunk and a giraffe's tongue are prehensile too. Human hands, with their thumbs, are said to be prehensile.

### Examples

- Spider monkeys have prehensile tails that can hold branches. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x1)
- A seahorse wraps its prehensile tail around seaweed. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x2)
- A chameleon uses its prehensile tail like an extra hand. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x3)
- An elephant's trunk is prehensile; it can pick up a single peanut. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x4)
- The possum hung from the tree by its prehensile tail. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x5)
- A giraffe's long prehensile tongue pulls leaves off branches. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x6)
- Our thumbs make our hands prehensile. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/#x7)

### Note

Say "pree-HEN-sile". From Latin "prehendere", to grasp (like "comprehend"). Myth trap: not all monkeys have prehensile tails — most monkeys from Africa and Asia do not; many from South and Central America do.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «prehensile» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/prehensile/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«prehensile» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/prehensile.html) on Mova free.