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eye socket

American  

noun

  1. the socket or orbit of the eye.


eye socket British  

noun

  1. the nontechnical name for orbit

"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

Etymology

Origin of eye socket

First recorded in 1835–45

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.

See Examples For:

Preserved in nearly perfect three-dimensional detail, the skeleton includes a skull with a huge eye socket and an elongated, sword-like snout.

From Science Daily Feb. 24, 2026

Once replaced in the eye socket, T. Ocellus takes over the ocular pathways to the brain, overriding the neurotransmissions throughout the body.

From Salon Sep. 18, 2025

It turned out the tumour between his eye socket and brain was a cholesterol granuloma, which is a type of benign cyst.

From BBC Jun. 2, 2025

After spending six days in the ICU in Reno, he was transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where another medical team tended to his shattered cheekbones, jaw and eye socket.

From Los Angeles Times May 17, 2024

Most startling of all, a splendid dark cartoon of a black eye was stamped in a ring on my eye socket, in the richest inks of Tyrian, chartreuse, and plum.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

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