Standard Lemma guide

prehensile

adj · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /pɹɪˈhɛn.saɪl/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /pɹiːˈhɛn.saɪl/
  • US: /pɹiˈhɛnsəl/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Able to take hold of and clasp objects; adapted for grasping especially by wrapping around an object.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: biology, natural-sciences, zoology

Examples

  • Some monkeys have prehensile tails which they use to pick things up.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adjective

Meaning 2

adapted for grasping especially by wrapping around an object

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a monkey's prehensile tail

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: nonprehensile

3

adjective satellite

Meaning 3

immoderately desirous of acquiring e.g. wealth

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • they are avaricious and will do anything for money
  • casting covetous eyes on his neighbor's fields
  • a grasping old miser
  • grasping commercialism
  • greedy for money and power
  • grew richer and greedier
  • prehensile employers stingy with raises for their employees

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: avaricious, covetous, grabby, grasping, greedy

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective satellite

Meaning 4

having a keen intellect- A.T.Quiller-Couch

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • poets--those gifted strangely prehensile men

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Borrowed from French préhensile, from Latin perfect passive participle prehēnsus, from prehendō (“grasp, seize”) + adjective suffix -ile, from Latin -ilis.

Across languages

Translations

23 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: хватателен (hvatatelen) — able to take hold of objects
  • Catalan: prènsil — able to take hold of objects
  • Dutch: grijp- — able to take hold of objects
  • Finnish: tarttuma- — able to take hold of objects
  • French: préhensile — able to take hold of objects
  • French: préhensif — able to take hold of objects
  • Galician: prénsil — able to take hold of objects
  • Hungarian: kapaszkodó — able to take hold of objects
  • Icelandic: grip- — able to take hold of objects
  • Indonesian: melilit — able to take hold of objects
  • Irish: greama — able to take hold of objects
  • Irish: inghreama — able to take hold of objects
  • Italian: prensile — able to take hold of objects
  • Macedonian: префатен (prefaten) — able to take hold of objects
  • Manx: yn-ghreimmee — able to take hold of objects
  • Occitan: prensil — able to take hold of objects
  • Polish: chwytny — able to take hold of objects
  • Portuguese: preênsil — able to take hold of objects
  • Russian: це́пкий (cépkij) — able to take hold of objects
  • Russian: хвата́тельный (xvatátelʹnyj) — able to take hold of objects
  • Serbo-Croatian: prehensilni — able to take hold of objects
  • Spanish: prensil — able to take hold of objects
  • Spanish: prensor — able to take hold of objects