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

• posthyoid
  adjective
• subhyoid
  adjective
• subhyoidean
  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

See Examples For:

hyoid

"This small-bodied -- in relation to the T. rex -- meat-eater's hyoid bone showed growth patterns that suggest maturity or approaching maturity," said Poust, Voorhies Endowed Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 15, 2026

Because no one had previously proven that hyoid bones could reliably preserve growth information, the researchers needed to verify the method before applying it to Nanotyrannus.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 9, 2025

When fish feed, muscles supporting these structures generate suction by depressing and retracting the hyoid and expanding the gill slits to draw water in.

From Science Magazine ● May 24, 2023

In fish the branchial arches form the jaws, the hyoid bone that supports the back of the jaw, and the skeleton that forms the throat and gill slits.

From Science Magazine ● May 24, 2023

Having the mandibular arch articulated with the hyoid arch and the cranium, as in the cestraciont sharks; Ð said of a skull.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Webster, Noah