ostium

[ os-tee-uh m ]

/ ˈɒs ti əm /

noun, plural os·ti·a [os-tee-uh] /ˈɒs ti ə/.

Anatomy, Zoology. a small opening or orifice, as at the end of the oviduct.

Zoology. one of the tiny holes in the body of a sponge.

Words nearby ostium

ostiak, ostiary, ostinato, ostiole, ostitis, ostium, ostium abdominale tubae uterinae, ostium of uterus, ostium uterinum tubae, ostler, ostmark

Origin of ostium

First recorded in 1655–65, ostium is from the Latin word ōstium entrance, river mouth

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

Examples from the Web for ostium

When in consequence of the sealing of the ostium the tube becomes distended with serous fluid it is termed hydrosalpinx.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 7|Various
A probe is then passed into the ostium, and the anterior wall of the sinus is removed with a curette or rongeur forceps.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles
This will bring the anterior wall of the sinus with its ostium into view.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)|Various
When it is established the septum primum grows down and meets the endocardial cushions, and so the ostium primum is obliterated.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 2|Various

The porter, who sat in a niche of the entrance-corridor (ostium).
Quintus Claudius, Volume 1 of 2|Ernst Eckstein

British Dictionary definitions for ostium

ostium

/ (ˈɒstɪəm) /

noun plural -tia (-tɪə) biology

any of the pores in sponges through which water enters the body

any of the openings in the heart of an arthropod through which blood enters

any similar opening

Word Origin for ostium

C17: from Latin: door, entrance

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 ostium

ostium

[ ŏs′tē-əm ]

n. pl. os•ti•a (-tē-ə)

A small opening or orifice, as in a body organ.

Other words from ostium

os′ti•al adj.