semicircular canal

American  

noun

Anatomy.

1. any of the three curved tubular canals in the labyrinth of the ear, associated with the sense of equilibrium.

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semicircular canal British  

noun

1. anatomy any of the three looped fluid-filled membranous tubes, at right angles to one another, that comprise the labyrinth of the ear: concerned with the sense of orientation and equilibrium

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semicircular canal Scientific  

/ sĕm′ĭ-sûr′kyə-lər /

1. Any of the three looped tubes of the inner ear that together with the vestibules makes up the organs that maintain equilibrium in vertebrates.

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Etymology

Origin of semicircular canal

First recorded in 1740–50

Example Sentences

David suspected that endolymph viscosity and semicircular canal size were related, and that both could reflect endothermy.

From Science Magazine • Jul. 20, 2022

If he’s done everything right, the calcified particles are flung through the semicircular canal like marbles out a chute.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 15, 2017

In that condition, called superior semicircular canal dehiscence, an opening in one of the canals of the inner ear causes vertigo and/or auditory disturbances.

From Washington Post • Oct. 5, 2015

As the head rotates in a plane parallel to the semicircular canal, the fluid lags, deflecting the cupula in the direction opposite to the head movement.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Ama was a wine vessel used in the early Christian Church, also a medical term for "an enlargement of the semicircular canal of the internal ear."

From Time Magazine Archive