From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishvestigialves‧ti‧gi‧al /veˈstɪdʒiəl, -dʒəl/ adjective 1 technical a vestigial part of the body has never developed completely or has almost disappeared The legs of snakes are vestigial or absent altogether.2 formal remaining as a sign that something existed after most of it has gone his vestigial sense of pride
Examples from the Corpus
vestigial• In most insects the 1st abdominal segment, and more especially its sternum, is reduced or vestigial.• The ears were vestigial, and lay flat to the head.• Other cells especially sensitive to light became vestigial eyes, and those susceptible to vibrations became hearing organs, and so on.• Mandibles are wanting in many adult Trichoptera and most Diptera, and are absent or vestigial in almost all Lepidoptera.• As a result there was only a vestigial junior management system.• Some snakes have vestigial legs.• It is often possible to see the vestigial remains of rear limbs on these large snakes.• They were no longer men, just the vestigial remains of what had once been human beings.• vestigial remnants of Western influence in the city 