Meanings
nounruga (plural rugae)
plural rugae
- plural normallyanatomyA fold, crease or wrinkle.
Female: Face subpolished, weakly rugose, rugae somewhat diverging, at sides sparsely and shallowly punctate; […]
1980, Joseph Kenneth Jonathan, The Isotima-complex (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), page 831 more example
the deadly water-snakes coil’d together like the Rugæ of a single great Brain, the gray and even illumination from the Sky
1997, Thomas Pynchon, Mason & Dixon
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₁roug-h₂-
- Proto-Italic*rougā
- Latinrūga
- Englishruga
Borrowed from Latin rūga (“a crease in the face, wrinkle”).
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian гънка
- гънка (gănka)crease, wrinkle
Finnish poimu
- poimucrease, wrinkle
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with ruga
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
ruga. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ruga
MLA
“ruga.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ruga. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ruga,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ruga.
Source: ruga on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.