petrous

[pe-truh s, pee-]

See more synonyms for petrous on Thesaurus.com

adjective

Anatomy. noting or pertaining to the hard dense portion of the temporal bone, containing the internal auditory organs; petrosal.
like stone, especially in hardness; stony; rocky.

Origin of petrous

1350–1400; Middle English (< Middle French petros) < Latin petrōsus rocky. See petr-, -ous

Related formssu·per·pet·rous, adjective

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

Related Words for petrous

jagged, craggy, rough, flinty, hard, inflexible, petrified, solid, lapidarian, lithic, pebbly, petrous, rock-ribbed

Examples from the Web for petrous

Historical Examples of petrous

The bones related to the organ of hearing, the tympanis and petrous bones, are very solid and dense in structure.
The Cambridge Natural History, Vol X., Mammalia
Frank Evers Beddard
On its inner side is a small air chamber in the petrous portion of the temporal bone, called the cavity of the tympanum.
A Practical Physiology
Albert F. Blaisdell
From the surrounding 794 mesoderm the petrous bone is formed by a process of chondrification and ossification.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 9
Various
The bony labyrinth presents a series of cavities which are channelled through the substance of the petrous bone.
A Treatise on Anatomy, Physiology, and Hygiene (Revised Edition)
Calvin Cutter
By this means the posterior surface of the petrous bone can be exposed as far inwards as the internal auditory meatus.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)
Various

British Dictionary definitions for petrous

petrous

adjective

anatomy denoting the dense part of the temporal bone that surrounds the inner ear
rare like rock or stone

Word Origin for petrous

C16: from Latin petrōsus full of rocks

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 petrous

adj.

1540s, from Middle French petreux, from Latin petrosus "stony," from petra "rock," from Greek petra "rock, cliff, ledge, shelf of rock, rocky ridge," of uncertain origin. Possibly from PIE root *per- "to lead, pass over," if the original meaning is "bedrock" and the notion is "what one comes through to" [Watkins].

petrous in Medicine

petrous

[pĕt′rəs]

adj.

Of stony hardness.
Of or relating to the dense hard portion of the temporal bone that forms a protective case for the inner ear.