pectinate

Pec"ti*na`te, Pec"ti*na`ted, a. Etym: [L. pectinatus, p.pr. of pectinare to comb, from pecten, -inis, a comb; cf. Gr. feax hair, OHG. fahs, E. paxwax.] 1. Resembling the teeth of a comb. 2. (Nat. Hist.) Defn: Having very narrow, close divisions, in arrangement and regularity resembling those of a comb; comblike; as, a pectinate leaf; pectinated muscles. See Illust. (e) of Antennæ. 3. Interlaced, like two combs. [R.] "Our fingers pectinated, or shut together." Sir T. Browne. Pectinate claw (Zoöl.), a claw having a serrate edge, found in some birds, and supposed to be used in cleaning the feathers.

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