Definition of "umbilical cord" [umbilical cord]

• Anatomy The flexible cordlike structure connecting a fetus at the abdomen with the placenta and containing two umbilical arteries and one vein that transport nourishment to the fetus and remove its wastes. (noun)
• Something likened to this structure; a source or means of support or sustenance: "All the umbilical cords of dependency still exist because the public wants them” ( David A. Stockman). (noun)
• Aerospace Any of various external electrical lines or fluid tubes that supply a rocket before launch. (noun)
• Aerospace The line that supplies an astronaut with oxygen and in some cases with communications while outside the spacecraft. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "There, lying between her legs was a newly-born infant, the umbilical cord and afterbirth still attached."
• "I placed it and the afterbirth and umbilical cord on the bed just as Daddy opened the door and stepped back into the room."
• "“Body Burden—The Pollution in Newborns: A benchmark investigation of industrial chemicals, pollutants and pesticides in umbilical cord blood,” executive summary, Environmental Working Group, 2005 ewg.org/reports/bodyburden2execsumm.php."