limb
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.an arm or a leg of a person, or a similar part of an animal like a wing.
n.a major functional appendage of a human or animal body used for movement or manipulation.
Simple“The athlete stretched every limb before starting the long race.”
In context“The surgeon worked meticulously to restore blood flow to the injured limb, hoping to avoid permanent nerve damage.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a large, main branch of a tree.
n.a primary structural branch of a tree, extending from the main trunk.
Simple“The heavy snow caused a large limb of the oak tree to snap.”
In context“Arborists recommend removing dead limbs during the winter to prevent them from falling and causing property damage during spring storms.”
- 03 C1 Advanced
n.the outer edge of the disk of a planet, moon, or star as seen from a distance.
n.the apparent visual edge of the disk of a celestial body.
Simple“The telescope captured a beautiful glow around the western limb of the moon.”
In context“Solar flares are often most visible when they occur near the sun's limb, appearing as bright loops against the darkness of space.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
n.the flat, spreading part of a flower petal or leaf.
n.the border or upper spreading part of a petal, sepal, or monopetalous corolla.
Simple“The flower has a narrow base that opens into a wide, colourful limb.”
In context“The botanical illustration clearly distinguished between the narrow claw and the broad, serrated limb of the individual petals.”
- 05 C2 Proficiency
v.to cut the branches off a tree that has been fallen.
v.to remove the limbs or branches from a tree or animal carcass.
Simple“The workers had to limb the fallen pine before they could move the trunk.”
In context“After the storm, the cleanup crew spent hours limbing the downed timber to clear the primary access roads for emergency vehicles.”
UsageThe verb is transitive and requires a direct object.
Synonymsdismemberprune
“While shark bites get more attention, the microscopic shark that is Vibrio vulnificans can also rob you of life or limb .”
“These animals have jointed limbs and hard external skeletons.”
From Middle English lyme, lim, from Old English lim (“limb, branch”), from Proto-West Germanic limu, from Proto-Germanic limuz (“branch, limb”). Cognate with Old Norse limr (“limb”). The spelling with the silent unetymological -b first arose in the late 1500s. Compare crumb.
From Latin limbus (“border”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.