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cae·cil·ian

(sə-sĭlyən, -sĭlē-ən, -sēl-)

Any of various legless, burrowing amphibians of the order Gymnophiona, having numerous grooved rings encircling the body, and found chiefly in tropical regions.

[From New Latin Caecilia, genus to which Carl Linnaeus assigned the first caecilian species (Caecilia tentaculata) that he described, from Latin caecilia, slowworm, from caecus, blind (from its small eyes).]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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