metacarpus

[met-uh-kahr-puh s]

See more synonyms for metacarpus on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural met·a·car·pi

[met-uh-kahr-pahy] /ˌmɛt əˈkɑr paɪ/. Anatomy.

the part of a hand or forelimb, especially of its bony structure, included between the wrist, or carpus, and the fingers, or phalanges.

Origin of metacarpus

1670–80; < New Latin (see meta-, carpus), replacing metacarpium < Greek metakárpion

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for metacarpus

grip, fist, palm, ham, paw, extremity, grasp, hold, fin, hook, shaker, mitt, metacarpus, phalanges

Examples from the Web for metacarpus

Historical Examples of metacarpus

Fracture of the Metacarpus, showing Fragmentation of the Bullet194 12.
Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900
George Henry Makins
In them not only is the metacarpus turned back, but also the two first phalanges.
Artistic Anatomy of Animals
douard Cuyer
But the other variations are in the length of the metacarpus, or of the neck, or head.
Dragons of the Air
H. G. Seeley
The metacarpus consists of bones which correspond to the back of the hand.
Dragons of the Air
H. G. Seeley
The metacarpus is reduced to a single piece, which in the horse constitutes what is known as the canon.
Artistic Anatomy of Animals
douard Cuyer

British Dictionary definitions for metacarpus

metacarpus

noun plural -pi (-paɪ)

the skeleton of the hand between the wrist and the fingers, consisting of five long bones
the corresponding bones in other vertebrates

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

Word Origin and History for metacarpus

1650s, Modern Latin, from Greek metakarpion, from meta- (see meta-) + karpos "wrist" (see carpus). Related: Metacarpal.

metacarpus in Medicine

metacarpus

[mĕt′ə-kär′pəs]

n. pl. met•a•car•pi (-pī)

The part of the hand that includes the five bones between the fingers and the wrist.