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tailbone

American  
[teyl-bohn] / ˈteɪlˌboʊn /

noun

Anatomy.
  • tailbones
    plural
  1. the coccyx.


tailbone Scientific  
/ tālbōn′ /
  1. See coccyx


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of tailbone

First recorded in 1540–50; tail 1 + bone

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Leah Cullen was diagnosed with tailbone cancer when she was 13, but after surgery and radiotherapy doctors said she would be unable to carry a child.

From BBC Feb. 3, 2026

Following this evolutionary split, the group of apes that includes present-day humans evolved the formation of fewer tail vertebrae, giving rise to the coccyx, or tailbone.

From Science Daily Feb. 28, 2024

And D’Angelo Russell was quiet in his 20 minutes before leaving the game with a tailbone contusion he suffered drawing a charge at the end of the third.

From Los Angeles Times Dec. 30, 2023

She said X-rays showed no “definitive fracture” in her tailbone, just some cortical irregularity.

From Seattle Times Nov. 7, 2023

I tumbled tush over tailbone into the grass.

From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon

So far, they know they have found a leg, hip, pelvis, a couple of tailbones and a good chunk of the skull, Lyson said.

From Seattle Times Jun. 3, 2024

She said that if a bunch of people just came in off the street, she’d estimate that only half would be able to do the pose with their tailbones down.

From Slate May 6, 2023

On TikTok, chiropractors are stretching chubby legs, massaging infant tailbones and tracing the tiny vertebrae of baby spines, touting a range of unproven treatments for newborns, babies and toddlers.

From Washington Post Sep. 15, 2022

And when the bow slammed into the wall of water ahead, their bodies crashed back to the deck, jarring their tailbones and bruising their legs.

From Washington Times Jan. 12, 2020

Some wore pillow-size stuffed animal turtles around their rumps to protect their tailbones in a fall.

From New York Times Nov. 27, 2019

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