tendon

American  

[ten-duhn] / ˈtɛn dən /

noun

• tendons
  plural

1. Anatomy. a cord or band of dense, tough, inelastic, white, fibrous tissue, serving to connect a muscle with a bone or part; sinew.

2. a reinforcing strand in prestressed concrete.

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tendon British  

/ ˈtɛndən /

noun

1. a cord or band of white inelastic collagenous tissue that attaches a muscle to a bone or some other part; sinew

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tendon Scientific  

/ tĕn′dən /

1. A band of tough, fibrous, inelastic tissue that connects a muscle to a bone. Tendons are made chiefly of collagen.

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tendon Cultural  

1. A tough band of fibrous connective tissue that connects muscles to bones.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• tendons
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of tendon

1535–45; < Medieval Latin tendōn- (stem of tendō ) < Greek ténōn sinew (spelling with -d- by association with Latin tendere to stretch)

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Compare meaning

How does tendon compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• tendon vs. ligament
• aponeurosis vs. tendon

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Explanation

If you feel the back of your ankle, you will find the tough, ropelike tendon that joins your calf muscle to your heel bone. That's the job of tendons throughout your body: connecting bone and muscle so you can move. Consider that the Latin word tendere means "to stretch." That's an apt beginning for the word tendon, a tough but stretchy fibrous tissue (sinew). A tendon is made of dense bundles of fibrous collagen that form ropelike connectors that allow muscles and bones to work together. Athletes often suffer injuries to tendons, most often to the rotator cuff in the shoulder, the Achilles tendon in the leg, the patellar tendon in the knee, and the biceps muscle in the arm.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tendon tendons

“Whether it’s your bone, whether it’s your muscle, whether it’s your tendon, you have to challenge yourself every day with different things.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

He has not played competitively since 2024 after rupturing an Achilles tendon in March 2025 and having back surgery last October.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

So I’ll head for Old Torrance and do another doubleheader with Kagura for katsu, and I’ll hit Tendon Tempura Carlos Jr. for soba or tendon.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

Earlier, Jobe had grafted a tendon to a recovered polio patient’s ankle to provide stabilization.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

I bruised the tendon of my heel, wrenching it like a fool when my foot was caught between two boulders, and limped out the afternoon.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

While max-cushion shoes may feel great initially, repetition of these minute wobbly, twisting moments plus the extra mechanical load on muscles, tendons, joints and bones could lead to injury in the long term, critics say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

The unnatural act of throwing a baseball still tears tendons and wrenches elbows.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

In other insects, it helps form durable structures such as wing hinges and tendons that must bend repeatedly without wearing out.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 27, 2026

Richards, who missed the 2022 World Cup because of a hamstring injury, tore two tendons in his left ankle a month ago but is healthy enough now to play.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026

Nelson drew his knife and knelt to help me with the tedious work of cutting through the tendons and peeling back the pelt.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

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Related Words

• hamstring
• ligament
• sinew
• tissue

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