incus
Americannoun
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Anatomy. the middle one of a chain of three small bones in the middle ear of humans and other mammals.
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Also called thunderhead. Also called anvil. Also called anvil cloud. Also called anvil top,. the spreading, anvil-shaped, upper portion of a mature cumulonimbus cloud, smooth or slightly fibrous in appearance.
noun
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The anvil-shaped bone (ossicle) that lies between the malleus and the stapes in the middle ear.
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The elongated, often anvil-shaped upper portion of a fully developed cumulonimbus cloud; a thunderhead.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of incus
1660–70; < New Latin, Latin incūs anvil, equivalent to incūd- (stem of incūdere to hammer, beat upon) + -s nominative singular ending; see incuse
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.
The auditory ossicles consist of three bones each: the malleus, incus, and stapes.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
The illustration shows the three bones of the inner ear, the malleus, the incus, and the stapes, which are connected together inside the ear canal.
From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015
The incus is the bridge between the malleus and stapes.
From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015
Inside the Eustachian tube the malleus, which touches the inside of the tympanum, is attached to the incus, which is in turn attached to the horseshoe-shaped stapes.
From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015
Hidden by the bulla, and just external to the periotic bone, are the auditory ossicles, the incus, malleus, os orbiculare, and stapes.
From Text Book of Biology, Part 1: Vertebrata by Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
