Chela

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈkilÉ™/

From Latin chele, from Ancient Greek χηλή.

Full definition of chela

Noun

1. A pincer-like claw of a crustacean or arachnid.
• 1646, Sir Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica, III.5:It happeneth often, I confess, that a lobster hath the chely or great claw of one side longer than the other ....
• 1993, The Encyclopedia of Land Invertebrate Behaviour, p. 232:The tail is curved up over the body and the pedipalps held forwards with the tip of the movable finger of the chela in contact with the sand.
• 2004, Raymond T. Bauer, Remarkable Shrimps: Adaptations and Natural History of the Carideans, page 26,The two brushes on each chela snap open into semicircular fans, forming fine-mesh baskets that passively filter water.

Derived terms

• chelate

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈt͡ʃei.lÉ™/

From Hindi चेला (celā).

Noun

1. A pupil or disciple, especially in Hinduism.
• 1987, Phirozshah Dorabji Mehta, The Heart of Religion, page 36,The guru had insight. He understood his chela. The relationship between a guru and his chela was as a father to a son, as a whole person to a whole person, individual and unique.
• 2002, Warrior of Light: The Life of Nicholas Roerich: Artist, Himalayan Explorer, and Visionary, page 52,The guru-chela relationship was a theme in many of Nicholas's paintings. In Pearl of Searching, the guru is looking thoughtfully at a pearl necklace with his chela. This symbolizes the "pearl of great price" that gives purpose to life.
• 2007, Michael Bertiaux, The Voudon Gnostic Workbook: Expanded Edition, page 455,This, of course, is done by the guru as the result of a long process in which his consciousness must merge with that of the chela and wherein the chela is absorbed essentially into the guru.

Anagrams

• leach