ossicle

American  

[os-i-kuhl] / ˈɒs ɪ kəl /

noun

1. a small bone.

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ossicle British  

/ ˈɒsɪkəl /

noun

1. a small bone, esp one of those in the middle ear

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ossicle Scientific  

/ ŏs′ĭ-kəl /

1. A small bone, especially one of the three located in the middle ear (the incus, malleus, and stapes) that transmit sound vibrations from the eardrum to the inner ear.

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Other Word Forms

• ossicular
  adjective
• ossiculate
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of ossicle

1570–80; < Latin ossiculum, equivalent to ossi- (combining form of os ) bone + -culum -cle ¹

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ossicle

A humanized bone marrow ossicle xenotransplantation model enables improved engraftment of healthy and leukemic human hematopoietic cells.

From Nature ● Jan. 23, 2018

Meng, J., Bi, S., Zheng, X. & Wang, X. Ear ossicle morphology of the Jurassic euharamiyidan Arboroharamiya and evolution of mammalian middle ear.

From Nature ● Nov. 12, 2017

Sound vibrations are transmitted by the eardrum and ossicle bones to the inner ear, a bony and membranous structure lined with tiny hairs that connect to the brain's auditory nerve.

From Time Magazine Archive

The tuberosity of the heel-bone or calcaneum is directed towards the sole, and parallel with it and extending to about double its length is a greatly elongated sesamoid ossicle.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10 "Echinoderma" to "Edward" by Various

Thomka in 1895 reported a case of supernumerary tympanic ossicle, the nature of which was unknown, although it was neither an inflammatory product nor a remnant of Meckel's cartilage.

From Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine by Walter L. (Walter Lytle) Pyle

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