occipital bone

American  

noun

Anatomy.

1. a curved, compound bone forming the back and part of the base of the skull.

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occipital bone British  

noun

1. the saucer-shaped bone that forms the back part of the skull and part of its base

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Etymology

Origin of occipital bone

First recorded in 1670–80

Example Sentences

When lawyers retained by Penn asked her about the occipital bone, she told them she was “confused” and “simply made an error.”

From New York Times • Oct. 19, 2022

The eight cranial bones are the frontal bone, two parietal bones, two temporal bones, occipital bone, sphenoid bone, and the ethmoid bone.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

But life doesn't let you just take the losses; it grabs your occipital bone, looks you in the eye, and smushes your face into the earth.

From Golf Digest • Nov. 22, 2019

“You have it locked up in the back of you,” one girl suggested, her hand creeping toward her occipital bone.

From The New Yorker • Apr. 17, 2017

“At the occipital bone, the posterior base of my skull,” Rachael said.

From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick