DIAPHRAGM

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does diaphragm mean? 

• DIAPHRAGM (noun)
  The noun DIAPHRAGM has 4 senses:

1. a mechanical device in a camera that controls size of aperture of the lens

2. (anatomy) a muscular partition separating the abdominal and thoracic cavities; functions in respiration

3. a contraceptive device consisting of a flexible dome-shaped cup made of rubber or plastic; it is filled with spermicide and fitted over the uterine cervix

4. electro-acoustic transducer that vibrates to receive or produce sound waves

  Familiarity information: DIAPHRAGM used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• DIAPHRAGM (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A mechanical device in a camera that controls size of aperture of the lens

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

diaphragm; stop

Context example:

the new cameras adjust the diaphragm automatically

Hypernyms ("diaphragm" is a kind of...):

mechanical device (mechanism consisting of a device that works on mechanical principles)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "diaphragm"):

iris; iris diaphragm (diaphragm consisting of thin overlapping plates that can be adjusted to change the diameter of a central opening)

Holonyms ("diaphragm" is a part of...):

camera; photographic camera (equipment for taking photographs (usually consisting of a lightproof box with a lens at one end and light-sensitive film at the other))

Sense 2

Meaning:

(anatomy) a muscular partition separating the abdominal and thoracic cavities; functions in respiration

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Synonyms:

diaphragm; midriff

Hypernyms ("diaphragm" is a kind of...):

membrane; tissue layer (a pliable sheet of tissue that covers or lines or connects the organs or cells of animals or plants)

muscle system; muscular structure; musculature (the muscular system of an organism)

Domain category:

anatomy; general anatomy (the branch of morphology that deals with the structure of animals)

Holonyms ("diaphragm" is a part of...):

body; torso; trunk (the body excluding the head and neck and limbs)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A contraceptive device consisting of a flexible dome-shaped cup made of rubber or plastic; it is filled with spermicide and fitted over the uterine cervix

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

contraceptive diaphragm; diaphragm; pessary

Hypernyms ("diaphragm" is a kind of...):

birth control device; contraceptive; contraceptive device; preventative; preventive; prophylactic device (an agent or device intended to prevent conception)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Electro-acoustic transducer that vibrates to receive or produce sound waves

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("diaphragm" is a kind of...):

disc; disk (a flat circular plate)

Holonyms ("diaphragm" is a part of...):

electro-acoustic transducer (a transducer that converts electrical to acoustic energy or vice versa)

 Context examples 

A duel-layered fibrous band linking the posterior surface of the liver to the diaphragm.

(Coronary Ligament, NCI Thesaurus)

A hiatal hernia is a condition in which the upper part of the stomach bulges through an opening in the diaphragm.

(Hiatal Hernia, NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

Herniation of the upper part of the stomach through the diaphragm.

(Hiatal Hernia, NCI Thesaurus)

A term that usually refers to the clinical course of lymphomas and indicates that the cancerous lymph nodes are not next to each other, but are on the same side of the diaphragm.

(Non-Contiguous Disease, NCI Thesaurus)

This manifests as stimulation by the lead of non-cardiac structures such as the diaphragm, chest wall, or pectoral muscle.

(Extracardiac Stimulation, NCI Thesaurus/ACC)

The portion of the greater omentum between the greater curvature of the stomach and the inferior surface of the diaphragm.

(Gastrophrenic Ligament, NCI Thesaurus)

Protrusion of some part of the abdominal or retroperitoneal structures through the diaphragm into the thorax.

(Diaphragmatic Hernia, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

A nerve that runs from the spinal cord to the diaphragm (the thin muscle below the lungs and heart that separates the chest from the abdomen).

(Phrenic nerve, NCI Dictionary)

The aspect of the prostate facing the pelvic diaphragm and pubis.

(Inferolateral Surface of the Prostate, NCI Thesaurus)

It is bounded laterally by the borders of the quadratus lumborum muscles and extends from the diaphragm to the brim of the true pelvis, where it continues as the pelvic extraperitoneal space.

(Murine Retroperitoneum, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)