meatus

[mee-ey-tuh s]

noun, plural me·a·tus·es, me·a·tus. Anatomy.

an opening or foramen, especially in a bone or bony structure, as the opening of the ear or nose.

Origin of meatus

1655–65; < Latin meātus course, channel, equivalent to meā(re) to go, extend, have a course + -tus suffix of v. action

Related formsme·a·tal, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for meatal

Historical Examples of meatal

Under good illumination, the largest possible speculum is inserted into the meatal orifice.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)
Various

British Dictionary definitions for meatal

meatus

noun plural -tuses or -tus

anatomy a natural opening or channel, such as the canal leading from the outer ear to the eardrum

Word Origin for meatus

C17: from Latin: passage, from meāre to pass

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

meatal in Medicine

meatal

[mē-āt′l]

adj.

Relating to a meatus.

meatus

[mē-ā′təs]

n. pl. me•a•tus•es

A body opening or passage, especially the external opening of a canal.