meatus

[ mee-ey-tuh s ]

/ miˈeɪ təs /

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.

Words nearby meatus

meatoplasty, meatorrhaphy, meatoscopy, meatotomy, meatspace, meatus, meaty, mebendazole, mebi-, mec, mecamylamine

Origin of meatus

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

OTHER WORDS FROM meatus

me·a·tal, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for meatus

The meatus lies about half an inch or two inches within the pelvis, the distance varying with the size of the dog.
The Dog|Dinks, Mayhew, and Hutchinson
Both nerves also may be torn across just before they enter the meatus in severe brain injuries apart from fracture.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles
If the meatus be very narrow the intrameatal method may fail to bring the stapes into view.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)|Various
A speculum is next inserted into the meatus and the cavity thoroughly examined.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)|Various

Klliker states however that the blind end of the meatus becomes actually pushed in towards the tympanic cavity.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume III (of 4)|Francis Maitland Balfour

British Dictionary definitions for meatus

meatus

/ (mɪˈeɪtəs) /

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

Medicine definitions for meatus

meatus

[ mē-ā′təs ]

n. pl. me•a•tus•es

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