psoas

[ soh-uhs ]

/ ˈsoʊ əs /

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noun, plural pso·ai

[soh-ahy], /ˈsoʊ aɪ/, pso·ae

[soh-ee]. /ˈsoʊ i/. Anatomy.

either of two muscles, one on each side of the loin, extending internally from the sides of the spinal column to the upper end of the femur, which assist in flexing and rotating the thigh and flexing the trunk on the pelvis.

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Origin of psoas

1675–85; <New Latin <Greek psóās, accusative plural (taken as nominative singular) of psóa a muscle of the loins

OTHER WORDS FROM psoas

pso·at·ic

[soh-at-ik], /soʊˈæt ɪk/, adjective

Words nearby psoas

psittacosis, PSK, Pskov, PSL, PSNI, psoas, psocid, psora, psoralea, psoralen, psoriasis

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use psoas in a sentence

If the subjacent iliac and psoas muscles be implicated, the thigh is flexed upon the leg in decubitus.
A System of Practical Medicine By American Authors, Vol. II|Various
This boy died before he was 20, with a psoas abscess, and I remember crying myself to sleep the night I learned of his death.
Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 2 (of 6)|Havelock Ellis
Hyperæsthesia developed in more than one case in which injury to the psoas had led to hæmorrhage into the muscle sheath.
Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900|George Henry Makins
Blood-staining of psoas sheath; no injury to vertebral column or to bowel detected.
Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900|George Henry Makins

In one pound weight of the psoas muscles Fleming counted no less than 300 Cysticerci.
Parasites|T. Spencer Cobbold

British Dictionary definitions for psoas

psoas

/ (ˈsəʊəs) /

noun

either of two muscles of the loins that aid in flexing and rotating the thigh

Word Origin for psoas

C17: from New Latin, from Greek psoai (pl)

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