fossa

¹ American  

[fos-uh] / ˈfɒs ə /

noun

Anatomy.

fossae plural

1. a pit, cavity, or depression, as in a bone.

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fossa ² American  

[fos-uh] / ˈfɒs ə /

noun

1. a forest-dwelling genetlike mammal, Cryptoprocta ferox, of the civet family, native to Madagascar, with a short coat of white, black, gray, or brown: now rare.

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fossa ¹ British  

/ ˈfɒsə /

noun

1. an anatomical depression, trench, or hollow area

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fossa ² British  

/ ˈfɒsə /

noun

1. a large primitive catlike viverrine mammal, Cryptoprocta ferox , inhabiting the forests of Madagascar: order Carnivora (carnivores). It has thick reddish-brown fur and preys on lemurs, poultry, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fossae
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fossa¹

1820–30; < Latin: ditch, trench, fosse, short for fossa ( terra ) dug or dug out (earth), noun use of feminine of fossus, past participle of fodere to dig

Origin of fossa²

1830–40; < Malagasy; compare earlier fossane (< French < Malagasy)

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fossa fossae

It is home to wildlife such as ring-tailed lemurs, the long-tailed cat, the fossa, spiny hedgehog-like mammals called tenrecs and nocturnal primates known as aye-ayes.

From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2023

Articular tubercle—The smooth ridge located immediately anterior to the mandibular fossa.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

The medial surface of the upper ilium forms the iliac fossa, with the arcuate line marking the inferior limit of this area.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

A small area of the ethmoid bone, consisting of the crista galli and cribriform plates, is located at the midline of this fossa.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

At the inferior and external part of this surface is situated a cavity which surmounts the corresponding condyle, and is known as the supracondyloid fossa.

From Artistic Anatomy of Animals by Cuyer, ?douard

The floor of the cranial cavity increases in depth from front to back and is divided into three cranial fossae.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

Posteriorly, the spine separates the supraspinous and infraspinous fossae, and then extends laterally as the acromion.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

The lesser wing of the sphenoid bone separates the anterior and middle cranial fossae.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 19, 2013

In, err, long… muscles – particularly big, strong muscles like those involved in any hypothetical trunk – leave visible attachment sites, such as crests, scars, or fossae.

From Scientific American ● Nov. 20, 2012

There are no post-orbital processes to the frontals or any other demarcation between the orbits and the temporal fossae.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10 "Echinoderma" to "Edward" by Various