‖Me‐du″sa (?), n. 1. (Class. Myth.) The Gorgon; or one of the Gorgons whose hair was changed into serpents, after which all who looked upon her were turned into stone.
2. [pl.Medusae (�).] (Zoöl.) Any free swimming acaleph; a jellyfish.
☞ The larger medusæ belong to the Discophora, and are sometimes called covered-eyed medusæ; others, known as naked-eyed medusæ, belong to the Hydroidea, and are usually developed by budding from hydroids. See Discophora, Hydroidea, and Hydromedusa.
Medusa bud(Zoöl.), one of the buds of a hydroid, destined to develop into a gonophore or medusa. See Athecata, and Gonotheca. — Medusa's head. (a) (Zoöl.) An astrophyton. (b) (Astron.) A cluster of stars in the constellation Perseus. It contains the bright star Algol.