Definition of dorsal

• a. - Pertaining to, or situated near, the back, or dorsum, of an animal or of one of its parts; notal; tergal; neural; as, the dorsal fin of a fish; the dorsal artery of the tongue; -- opposed to ventral.
• a. - Pertaining to the surface naturally inferior, as of a leaf.
• a. - Pertaining to the surface naturally superior, as of a creeping hepatic moss.
• a. - A hanging, usually of rich stuff, at the back of a throne, or of an altar, or in any similar position.