diaphragm

Meaning

Noun

1. In mammals, a sheet of muscle separating the thorax from the abdomen, contracted and relaxed in respiration to draw air into and expel air from the lungs.
2. Any of various membranes or sheets of muscle or ligament which separate one cavity from another.
3. A contraceptive device consisting of a flexible cup, used to cover the cervix during intercourse.
4. A flexible membrane separating two chambers and fixed around its periphery that distends into one or other chamber as the difference in the pressure in the chambers varies.
5. In a speaker, the thin, semi-rigid membrane which vibrates to produce sound.
6. A thin opaque structure with a central aperture, used to limit the passage of light into a camera or similar device.
7. A permeable or semipermeable membrane.
8. A floor slab, metal wall panel, roof panel or the like, having a sufficiently large in-plane shear stiffness and sufficient strength to transmit horizontal forces to resisting systems.

Verb

1. To reduce lens aperture using an optical diaphragm.
2. To act as a diaphragm, for example by vibrating.

Synonyms

midriff

membrane

aperture

contraceptive diaphragm

film

📽️

stop

🛑

pessary

diaphragma

septum

iris diaphragm

partition

pellicle

iris

thoracic diaphragm

hood

jockey

meninx

midrib

orifice

pump

skim

splasher

surge

theca

tunic

veil

velum

dash board

thin film

occluder

tunica

adventitia

cervical cap

thin coat

aperture stop

spill shield

battery separator

Newton’s ring

light rings

light diaphragm

flare stop

optical stop

thin foll

light screen

viser

sieve diaphragm

spacing mould

membrane barrier

diaphragmatic muscle

bezel

Translations

diaphragme

diafragma

diaframma

diafragma

Zwerchfell

Diaphragma

διάφραγμα

diafragma

Blende

membrana

diafragma

Membran

middenrif

membrane

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈdaɪəˌfɹæm/

Etymology

From Middle English diafragma, Ancient Greek διάφραγμα (diáphragma, “partition”), from διά (diá, “across”) and φράγμα (phrágma, “barrier”), from the verb φράσσω (phrássō). First attested in the late 14th century.