epiglottis

[ep-i-glot-is]

noun, plural ep·i·glot·tis·es, ep·i·glot·ti·des [ep-i-glot-i-deez] /ˌɛp ɪˈglɒt ɪˌdiz/. Anatomy.

a thin, valvelike, cartilaginous structure that covers the glottis during swallowing, preventing the entrance of food and drink into the larynx.

Nearby words

Origin of epiglottis

1605–15; < Greek epiglōttís; see epi-, glottis

Related formsep·i·glot·tal, ep·i·glot·tic, ep·i·glot·tid·e·an

[ep-i-glo-tid-ee-uh n] /ˌɛp ɪ glɒˈtɪd i ən/, adjectivesub·ep·i·glot·tal, adjectivesub·ep·i·glot·tic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for epiglottis

The yellow fibro-cartilage forms the expanded part of the ear, the epiglottis, and other parts of the larynx.
A Practical Physiology|Albert F. Blaisdell
When the epiglottis is involved there is pain and difficulty in swallowing.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles
Besides these there is the epiglottis, which from its situation above the glottis acts more or less as a lid.
The Brain and the Voice in Speech and Song|F. W. Mott
Then the food passes over the epiglottis, you recollect, down the gullet to the stomach.
Mind Amongst the Spindles|Various

To this last statement the thyroid and cricoid cartilages and the epiglottis are exceptions, being single.
Voice Production in Singing and Speaking|Wesley Mills

British Dictionary definitions for epiglottis

epiglottis

noun plural -tises or -tides (-tɪˌdiːz)

a thin cartilaginous flap that covers the entrance to the larynx during swallowing, preventing food from entering the trachea

Derived Formsepiglottal or epiglottic, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for epiglottis

epiglottis

1520s, from Late Latin epiglottis, from Greek epiglottis, literally "(that which is) upon the tongue," from epi "on" (see epi-) + glottis, from glotta, variant of glossa "tongue" (see gloss (n.2)). An earlier form was epiglote (c.1400), from Old French epiglotte. Related: Epiglottic.

Medicine definitions for epiglottis

epiglottis

[ĕp′ĭ-glŏt′ĭs]

n. pl. ep•i•glot•tis•es

The thin elastic cartilaginous structure located at the root of the tongue that folds over the glottis to prevent food and liquid from entering the trachea during the act of swallowing.

Related formsep′i•glot′tic adj.

Science definitions for epiglottis

epiglottis

[ĕp′ĭ-glŏt′ĭs]

A thin, triangular plate of cartilage at the base of the tongue that covers the glottis during swallowing to keep food from entering the trachea.