umbilical
adj.relating to the cord that connects a baby to its mother before birth. It can also describe a very strong connection between two things that depend on each other.
adj.relating to the cord connecting a fetus to the placenta, or describing a central, vital connection between two entities. Often used in technical medical contexts or as a metaphor for deep dependency.
“The doctor carefully cut the umbilical cord after the birth.”
“The small colony maintained an umbilical connection to the mainland through a single daily supply flight.”
“In aerospace engineering, an umbilical cable provides essential power and data to a rocket on the launch pad until the moment of ignition.”
Typically used attributively before a noun, most commonly in the fixed phrase 'umbilical cord'.
From Latin umbilicus (“navel”) + -al. By surface analysis, umbilic- + -al.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.