labrum
1 Americannoun
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labra
plural
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a lip or liplike part.
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Zoology.
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the anterior, unpaired member of the mouthparts of an arthropod, projecting in front of the mouth.
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the outer margin of the aperture of a shell of a gastropod.
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Anatomy. a ring of cartilage about the edge of a joint surface of a bone.
noun
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labra
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of labrum1
1810–20; < Latin: lip; akin to labium
Origin of labrum2
< Latin lābrum basin, contraction of lavābrum bathtub, equivalent to lavā ( re ) to wash + -brum instrumental suffix
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.
See Examples For:
Luffy beetles have the dorsal ridge teeth found in this lineage, but their labrum is not completely sclerotized.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
With just one competition under her belt this season, she dislocated her shoulder and sustained a torn labrum in what she described as the "silliest fall" in training in Switzerland last month.
From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026
The Torrance native is trying to become the first snowboarder to win three consecutive gold medals in halfpipe but will be competing with a torn labrum.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026
She said her labrum injury is less serious than feared, though it will prevent her from training before the Games.
From BBC ● Jan. 13, 2026
Male of Ibla Cumingii; labrum and palpi, as seen with the eye on a level with the summit of the mouth.
From A Monograph on the Sub-class Cirripedia With Figures of all the Species. by Charles Darwin
Thomas was already playing with partially torn labra in both shoulders.
From New York Times ● Sep. 25, 2020
He acknowledged the cold truths about torn labra: They can’t heal on their own, and most players who suffer similar ruptures end up on the operating table.
From New York Times ● Apr. 2, 2019
First, they suggest that the anomalocaridid’s frontal appendages are analogous to the mouthparts, or labra, of arthropods.
From Nature ● Jul. 15, 2014
Verily, a speech worthy of the orator and of those who sent him, similes habent labra lactucas.
From Bartholomew Sastrow Being the Memoirs of a German Burgomaster by Bartholomew Sastrow
Many Latin neuter plurals were adopted into French as feminine singulars, e.g., cornua, corne, horn; labra, lèvre, lip; vela, voile, sail.
From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Ernest Weekley
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