accessory nerve


nounAnatomy.
  1. either one of the eleventh pair of cranial nerves, consisting of motor fibers from the spinal cord that innervate the pharyngeal, trapezius, and sternocleidomastoid muscles, and motor fibers from the brain that join the vagus to innervate the thoracic and abdominal viscera.

Origin of accessory nerve

1
First recorded in 1835–45

Words Nearby accessory nerve

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British Dictionary definitions for accessory nerve

accessory nerve

noun
  1. either one of the eleventh pair of cranial nerves, which supply the muscles of the head, shoulders, larynx, and pharynx and the viscera of the abdomen and thorax

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