humerus

[ hyoo-mer-uhs or, often, yoo- ]

/ ˈhyu mər əs or, often, ˈyu- /

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noun, plural hu·mer·i

[hyoo-muh-rahy, or, often, yoo-]. /ˈhyu məˌraɪ, or, often, ˈyu-/. Anatomy.

the long bone in the arm of humans extending from the shoulder to the elbow.

Zoology. a corresponding bone, structure, or region in the forelimbs of other animals or in the wings of birds or insects.

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Origin of humerus

1350–1400; Middle English <Latin (h)umerus shoulder; cognate with Greek ômos,Gothic ams,Sanskrit ámsas

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH humerus

humerus , humorous

Words nearby humerus

humeral, humeral veil, humeroradial, humeroscapular, humeroulnar, humerus, Hume's law, humic, humic acid, humicole, humicolous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use humerus in a sentence

The humerus bones were stronger in hatchlings than in many adults.
Baby pterosaurs may have been able to fly right after hatching|Carolyn Gramling|September 15, 2021|Science News For Students
In particular, they zeroed in on one wing bone, the humerus.
Pterosaurs may have been able to fly as soon as they hatched|Carolyn Gramling|July 22, 2021|Science News
The hatchlings’ humerus bones were surprisingly stronger than those of many of the adults, the team found.
Pterosaurs may have been able to fly as soon as they hatched|Carolyn Gramling|July 22, 2021|Science News
The distal aspect of her left humerus was sticking out of the front of her arm.
New Orleans Shooting: I Saw the Mother’s Day Parade Gunman|Jarratt Pytell|May 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Far more likely is every twisted ankle in Dubuque and every fractured humerus in Dallas ending up on the Internet.
Kevin Ware’s Broken Leg Will Live On in the Annals of Grisly Injuries|Kent Sepkowitz|April 1, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He slowly improved with the exception of a pain in the left humerus, anteriorily, and in the upper part of the middle third.
Report on Surgery to the Santa Clara County Medical Society|Joseph Bradford Cox
The shaft of the humerus is always stouter than that of the femur, though different genera differ in this respect.
Dragons of the Air|H. G. Seeley
Fourthly, the prolongation of the coracoid bone beyond the articulation for the humerus, as in a Bird.
Dragons of the Air|H. G. Seeley
The metacarpal bones are much longer than the bones of the fore-arm, and about twice the length of the humerus.
Dragons of the Air|H. G. Seeley
The ball must therefore be very near the plate and behind the head of the humerus.
Gunshot Roentgenograms|Clyde S. Ford

British Dictionary definitions for humerus

humerus

/ (ˈhjuːmərəs) /

noun plural -meri (-məˌraɪ)

the bone that extends from the shoulder to the elbow

the corresponding bone in other vertebrates

Word Origin for humerus

C17: from Latin umerus; related to Gothic ams shoulder, Greek ōmos

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

Medical definitions for humerus

humerus

[ hyōō′mər-əs ]

n. pl. hu•mer•i (-mə-rī′)

The long bone of the arm or forelimb, extending from the shoulder to the elbow.

Scientific definitions for humerus

humerus

[ hyōō′mər-əs ]

Plural humeri (hyōō′mər-ī′)

The bone of the upper arm or the upper portion of the foreleg. See more at skeleton.