Library / English Dictionary

NERVE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Impudent aggressiveness

Example:

he had the effrontery to question my honesty

Synonyms:

boldness; brass; cheek; face; nerve

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

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

aggressiveness (the quality of being bold and enterprising)

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

audaciousness; audacity (aggressive boldness or unmitigated effrontery)

Derivation:

nervy (offensively bold)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The courage to carry on

Example:

you haven't got the heart for baseball

Synonyms:

heart; mettle; nerve; spunk

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

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

braveness; bravery; courage; courageousness (a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear)

Derivation:

nerve (get ready for something difficult or unpleasant)

nervy (showing or requiring courage and contempt of danger)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Any bundle of nerve fibers running to various organs and tissues of the body

Synonyms:

nerve; nervus

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

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

fascicle; fasciculus; fiber bundle; fibre bundle (a bundle of fibers (especially nerve fibers))

Meronyms (parts of "nerve"):

synapse (the junction between two neurons (axon-to-dendrite) or between a neuron and a muscle)

nerve fiber; nerve fibre (a threadlike extension of a nerve cell)

radicle ((anatomy) a small structure resembling a rootlet (such as a fibril of a nerve))

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

efferent; efferent nerve; motor nerve (a nerve that conveys impulses toward or to muscles or glands)

afferent; afferent nerve; sensory nerve (a nerve that passes impulses from receptors toward or to the central nervous system)

cranial nerve (any of the 12 paired nerves that originate in the brain stem)

depressor; depressor nerve (any nerve whose activity tends to reduce the activity or tone of the body part it serves)

musculospiral nerve; nervus radialis; radial nerve (largest branch of the brachial plexus; extends down the humerus to the lateral epicondyle where it divides into one branch that goes to the skin on the back of the hand and another that goes to the underlying extensor muscles)

splanchnic nerve (any of several nerves of the sympathetic part of the autonomic nervous system that innervate viscera and blood vessels)

nervus ischiadicus; sciatic nerve (arises from the sacral plexus and passes about halfway down the thigh where it divides into the common peroneal and tibial nerves)

nervus saphenus; saphenous nerve (a branch of the femoral nerve that supplies cutaneous branches to the inner aspect of the leg and foot)

cubital nerve; nervus ulnaris; ulnar nerve (a nerve running along the inner side of the arm and passing near the elbow; supplies intrinsic muscles of the hand and the skin of the medial side of the hand)

nervus spinalis; spinal nerve (any of the 31 pairs of nerves emerging from each side of the spinal cord (each attached to the cord by two roots: ventral and dorsal))

Derivation:

nervous (of or relating to the nervous system)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Get ready for something difficult or unpleasant

Synonyms:

nerve; steel

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Hypernyms (to "nerve" is one way to...):

brace; poise (prepare (oneself) for something unpleasant or difficult)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

nerve (the courage to carry on)

Credits

 Context examples: 

A type of disease in which the nerve cells in the brain that act on muscle cells break down and stop working.

(Motor neuron disease, NCI Dictionary)

These plaques are made up of a small protein chain called beta-amyloid, along with other proteins and pieces of nerve cells.

(Alzheimer’s protein may have natural antibiotic role, NIH)

The persistent stall in autophagy means the nerve cells are unable to 'clean' the brain and this results in a build up of toxins.

(New Mechanisms Found of Cell Death in Neurodegenerative Disorders, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

It results in damage to nerve fibers, disrupting communication between the brain and the body.

(Immune System Reset May Halt Multiple Sclerosis Progression, NIH)

He has nerves of steel, and yet I know that he has hardly slept since this terrible event.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

But he had lost his nerve.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

As it grows, it presses against the hearing and balance nerves.

(Acoustic Neuroma, NIH: National Institute of Deafness and Communication Disorders)

He was in a pitiable state of reaction, with every nerve in a twitter.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A chemical made by some types of nerve cells.

(Acetylcholine, NCI Dictionary)

Stomach and nerves had gone to sleep.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)