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metatarsus

American  
[met-uh-tahr-suhs] / ˌmɛt əˈtɑr səs /

noun

Anatomy, Zoology.
  • metatarsi
    plural
  1. the part of a foot or hind limb, especially its bony structure, included between the tarsus and the toes or phalanges.


metatarsus British  
/ ˌmɛtəˈtɑːsəs /

noun

  1. the skeleton of the human foot between the toes and the tarsus, consisting of five long bones

  2. the corresponding skeletal part 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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of metatarsus

From New Latin, dating back to 1670–80; see origin at meta-, tarsus

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:

Soles of fore-feet and terminal portion of those of hind-pair naked; under surface of metatarsus clothed with hair.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 4 "Carnegie Andrew" to "Casus Belli" by Various

On the hind feet, at the upper end of the metatarsus, there is a callosity three inches long and three quarters of an inch broad, destitute of hair.

From Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America, During the Year 1799-1804 — Volume 2 by Alexander von Humboldt

Feet black, webbed, the membrane being deeply notched, great toe articulated to the metatarsus.

From Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society - Vol. 3 Zoology by Various

The portion which corresponds to that which is fleshy in the horse arises from the tibia; below, it ends on the inner surface of the superior extremity of the metatarsus and the cuneiform bones.

From Artistic Anatomy of Animals by ?douard Cuyer

Thus romance, beginning at the metatarsus, slowly but surely ascends to the diastolic region!

From The Prairie Mother by Arthur E. Becher

Cephalothorax, legs, sternum, mandibles, and palpi whitish; tarsi, and sometimes metatarsi, slightly infuscated; sternum sometimes more yellowish, no markings.

From New West Indian Spiders Bulletin of the AMNH, Vol. XXXIII, Art. XLI, pp. 639-642 by Nathan Banks

Male: Cephalothorax, palpi, sternum, and most of legs yellowish; abdomen dark brown; metatarsi dark, tibiæ infuscated; mandibles reddish brown; tips of male palpi dark.

From New West Indian Spiders Bulletin of the AMNH, Vol. XXXIII, Art. XLI, pp. 639-642 by Nathan Banks

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