hyoid

American  

[hahy-oid] / ˈhaɪ ɔɪd /

adjective

1. Also hyoidal hyoidean noting or pertaining to a U -shaped bone at the root of the tongue in humans, or a corresponding bone or collection of bones in animals.

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noun

1. the hyoid bone.

hyoid British  

/ ˈhaɪɔɪd /

adjective

1. of or relating to the hyoid bone

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noun

1. the horseshoe-shaped bone that lies at the base of the tongue and above the thyroid cartilage

2. a corresponding bone or group of bones in other vertebrates

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subhyoidean
  adjective
• posthyoid
  adjective
• subhyoid
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of hyoid

1700–10; < New Latin hȳoïdes < Greek hȳoeidḗs, shaped like the letter hypsilon (i.e. upsilon), equivalent to hȳ- (derivative of letter name hŷ, variant of ŷ; see upsilon) + -oeidēs -oid

Example Sentences

"Our expectations were simply following along with that consensus, but once we sampled the hyoid and saw features that strongly indicated maturity, we knew that we had to examine that idea more skeptically."

From Science Daily • Apr. 15, 2026

The hyoid, however -- the throat bone that supports the tongue -- offered a rare opportunity to assess maturity in a skull-dominated specimen.

From Science Daily • Dec. 9, 2025

Another gill arch eventually evolved into a head bone called the hyoid.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 1, 2023

Known placoderms have at most five gill arches, others having evolved into jaws and the hyoid, so the pectoral girdle derives from what was once the sixth gill arch, Brazeau’s team concludes.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 1, 2023

Occasionally, from the top of the isthmus, a nearly but not quite median pyramidal lobe runs up toward the hyoid bone, while in other cases the isthmus may be absent.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various