coccyx
Use Coccyx in a sentence
sɪks [kok-sahy-jeez, kok-si-jeez] . Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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coccyx (ˈkɒksɪks) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n , pl coccyges | |
| a small triangular bone at the end of the spinal column in man and some apes, representing a vestigial tail | |
| [C17: from New Latin, from Greek kokkux cuckoo, of imitative origin; from the likeness of the bone to a cuckoo's beak] | |
| coccygeal | |
| —adj | |
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| middle one of a chain of three small bones in the middle ear |
| a small, thin, membrane bone forming the front part of the inner wall of each orbit. |
coccyx
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coccyx coc·cyx (kŏk'sĭks)
n. pl. coc·cy·ges (kŏk-sī'jēz, kŏk'sĭ-jēz')
The small triangular bone located at the base of the spinal column, formed by the fusion of four rudimentary vertebrae, and articulating above with the sacrum. Also called tailbone.
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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| coccyx (kŏk'sĭks) Pronunciation Key
Plural coccyges (kŏk-sī'jēz, kŏk'sĭ-jēz') A small triangular bone at the base of the spine in humans and apes. It is composed of several fused vertebrae. Also called tailbone. |
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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coccyx
curved, semiflexible lower end of the backbone (vertebral column) in apes and humans, representing a vestigial tail. It is composed of three to five successively smaller caudal (coccygeal) vertebrae. The first is a relatively well-defined vertebra and connects with the sacrum; the last is represented by a small nodule of bone. The spinal cord ends above the coccyx. In early adulthood the coccygeal vertebrae fuse with each other; in later life the coccyx may fuse with the sacrum. A corresponding structure in other vertebrates, such as birds, may also be called a coccyx.
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