Megalocephalic

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Characterized by an abnormally large or oversized head; relating to a condition involving an unusually large cranium or skull size; describing an individual or specimen with a disproportionately big head compared to the body
2. Pertaining to the presence of a greatly enlarged head; indicating medical or anatomical features of excessive cranial dimensions; used to denote large-headedness in biological or clinical contexts
3. Referring to the state of having a head that is significantly larger than typical; associated with morphological traits involving head enlargement; descriptive of persons or creatures with an unusually big skull structure

Etymology: Megalocephalic is a technical coinage built from two Greek elements: "megalo-", from "megas" meaning "large", and "-cephalic", from "kephalē" meaning "head". Put together, the word describes a head that is markedly bigger than usual. The "-cephalic" ending is the same one found in dolichocephalic (long-headed) and brachycephalic (short-headed), so megalocephalic belongs to a family of measurement terms used to classify skull shapes. The Greek roots themselves are old, but the word as a whole is a modern formation built from them. Ancient Greek writers did not use it. Its usefulness lies in its precision: a physician or anthropologist can describe an abnormally large skull in a single term, and the same pattern lets others name different head shapes in parallel.

Synonyms: macrocephalic, large-headed

Antonyms: microcephalic, small-headed