clavicle
Americannoun
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a bone of the pectoral arch.
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(in humans) either of two slender bones, each articulating with the sternum and a scapula and forming the anterior part of a shoulder; collarbone.
noun
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Nontechnical name: collarbone. either of the two bones connecting the shoulder blades with the upper part of the breastbone
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the corresponding structure in other vertebrates
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Either of two slender bones that extend from the upper part of the sternum (breastbone) to the shoulder.
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Also called collarbone
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of clavicle
1605–15; < Medieval Latin clāvicula collarbone, Latin: tendril, door-bolt, little key, equivalent to clāvi ( s ) key + -cula -cule 1
Explanation
The clavicle, more commonly known as the collarbone, connects your shoulder blade to you sternum. The clavicle is the only long horizontal bone in the body (all the other long bones are vertical, such as those in the arms and legs). It evolved to provide a structural support for the arms, and also to serve as protection around blood vessels and nerves in that part of the body. The clavicles of birds are Y-shaped and, on a holiday turkey, are also called the "wishbone."
Vocabulary lists containing clavicle
Gross, Anatomy!
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Human Anatomy and Physiology - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Last week recorded two doji candles, and could be forming the right clavicle in a bullish inverse head and shoulders pattern.
From Barron's • May 4, 2026
"Barrie McDermott dived on top of me and I popped my clavicle joint," Davies recalls.
From BBC • Oct. 20, 2025
Ahkello Witherspoon’s fractured clavicle is expected to keep him out for about 12 weeks, posing a significant blow to the Rams secondary ahead of showdown vs.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 16, 2025
A fractured right clavicle ended his sophomore season, before he separated his right AC joint as a junior in 2021.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 25, 2024
One day, as I am polishing an ornately decorated serving spoon, Mrs. Nielsen points at her clavicle and says, without looking at me, “We could clean that up for you, if you like.”
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
