1. Plural of carina; a keel-shaped anatomical structure or ridge, especially in biology and anatomy.
Usage: technical; anatomy; biology
2. In botany, the two lower petals of a papilionaceous flower that are fused together.
Usage: botany; technical

Examples

• The carinae of the trachea branch into the left and right main bronchi.
• Anatomists studied the carinae present in the vertebral structures.
• The flower's carinae are characteristic of legume species.
• Under the microscope, the carinae appeared as distinct ridged formations.
• The carinae of the sternum provide attachment points for ribs.