A transparent or translucent membrane that can be drawn across the eye from the inner corner to protect it and moisten it, while maintaining vision. It's like an extra eyelid that some animals have.
The cat's nictitating membrane was visible when it was sleepy.
Birds use their nictitating membrane to protect their eyes during flight, especially from dust and wind.
nictitating membraneadjective
Relating to or resembling a nictitating membrane.
The creature had a nictitating membrane-like covering over its eyes.
Researchers studied the unusual nictitating membrane structure of the reptile's eye.
Frequently Asked Questions
The phonetic transcription of "nictitating membrane" is /nɪk.tɪˌteɪ.tɪŋ ˈmem.breɪn/ in British English and /nɪk.tɪˌteɪ.tɪŋ ˈmem.breɪn/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.
Example usage of "nictitating membrane": "The cat's nictitating membrane was visible when it was sleepy.". More examples on the page.