optic nerve

American  

noun

Anatomy.

1. either one of the second pair of cranial nerves, consisting of sensory fibers that conduct impulses from the retina to the brain.

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optic nerve British  

noun

1. the second cranial nerve, which provides a sensory pathway from the retina to the brain

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optic nerve Scientific  

1. Either of the second pair of cranial nerves, which carry sensory information relating to vision from the retina of the eye to the brain. Disease or injury of the optic nerve can result in partial or total blindness.

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optic nerve Cultural  

1. The nerve that carries electrical signals from the retina in the eye to the brain.

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Etymology

Origin of optic nerve

First recorded in 1605–15

Example Sentences

After a week getting steroids and pain medicine at Providence St. John’s Medical Center in Santa Monica, he received the biopsy results: an extremely aggressive malignant mass was blocking blood flow to Duong’s optic nerve.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Those signals travel through nerve cells at the back of the eye and then through the optic nerve to the brain, where images are formed.

From Science Daily • Mar. 2, 2026

Glaucoma is a chronic eye disease that damages the optic nerve and can result in permanent vision loss.

From Science Daily • Jan. 16, 2026

Searle lives with a rare eyesight condition called Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy - which affects vision by causing the optic nerve to become progressively thinner.

From BBC • Jan. 2, 2026

But she knew that even if the knives were not poised above her optic nerve, she would attend to her nephews only out of duty.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan