Adam's apple

American  

noun

Adam's apples plural

1. a projection of the thyroid cartilage at the front of the neck that is more prominent in men than in women.

2. crape jasmine.

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Adam's apple British  

noun

1. the visible projection of the thyroid cartilage of the larynx at the front of the neck

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Adam's apples
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Adam's apple

First recorded in 1745–55

Example Sentences

I stared at Noah’s bobbing Adam’s apple as he suckled at his bottle.

From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2025

Addressing a closeted lover in “Georgie Pie,” Mr. Haggerty asked: “Would your Adam’s apple flutter,/Would both knees turn to butter,/Would you sputter, would you mutter and deny?”

From New York Times • Nov. 10, 2022

In girls transitioning to boys, testosterone generally leads to permanent voice-lowering, facial hair and protrusion of the Adam’s apple, said Dr. Stephanie Roberts, a specialist at Boston Children’s Hospital’s Gender Management Service.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2022

I remember his prominent Adam’s apple as he talked about his job doing industrial painting.

From Slate • Jun. 16, 2021

“You’re too young to know about”—Pop swallows, his Adam’s apple bobs—“the towers falling. What kind of school are you going to?”

From "Towers Falling" by Jewell Parker Rhodes