- the sensory and control apparatus of all multicellular animals above the level of sponges, consisting of a network of nerve cells
See neurone
See also central nervous system
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
ˈnerv•ous ˌsys•tem,
n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Anatomythe system of nerve cells, chemicals, and structures that work to receive messages from outside the body, and in sending messages that result in movement and other responses, including the brain, spinal cord, and nerves.
nerv′ous sys′tem, [Anat., Zool.]
- Zoology, Anatomythe system of nerves and nerve centers in an animal or human, including the brain, spinal cord, nerves, and ganglia.
- Anatomy, Zoologya particular part of this system. Cf. autonomic nervous system, central nervous system, peripheral nervous system.
- 1730–40
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
nervous system n
'nervous system' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
acetylcholine
- alexia
- alpha-blocker
- amphetamine
- analeptic
- aphasia
- apraxia
- atropine
- autonomic
- autonomic nervous system
- botulism
- brain
- BSE
- central nervous system
- chorea
- Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
- epilepsy
- Gulf War syndrome
- kuru
- multiple sclerosis
- nerve gas
- neural
- neuro-
- neurobiology
- neurodevelopment
- neurology
- neurological
- neuropathy
- neuropathology
- neurophysiology
- neuroscience
- neurosurgery
- parasympathetic
- Parkinson's disease
- plant
- rabies
- response
- Sherrington
- spinal cord
- staggers
- strychnine
- sway-back
- sympathectomy
- sympathetic
- sympatholytic
- sympathomimetic
- trace
- wetware
- afferent
- Babinski's reflex