trigeminal

[ trahy-jem-uh-nl ]

/ traɪˈdʒɛm ə nl /

Anatomy

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adjective

of or relating to the trigeminal nerve.

noun

Also called trigeminal nerve . either one of the fifth pair of cranial nerves, consisting of motor fibers that innervate the muscles of mastication, and of sensory fibers that conduct impulses from the head and face to the brain.

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Origin of trigeminal

1820–30; <New Latin trigemin(us) (Latin: triple, equivalent to tri-tri- + geminus twin, double) + -al¹

Words nearby trigeminal

trifurcate, trig, triga, trigamous, trigamy, trigeminal, trigeminal nerve, trigeminal neuralgia, trigeneration, Trigère, trig function

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

How to use trigeminal in a sentence

The trigeminal nerve, which is the part of the nervous system that sends touch, pain, and temperature feelings from your face to your brain, interprets it.
Spiciness isn’t a taste, and more burning facts about the mysterious sensation|Elana Spivack|September 24, 2021|Popular-Science
As you repeat this process, you can withstand stronger and stronger burns because the nerve endings on your tongue that communicate with the trigeminal nerve become desensitized, inhibiting transmission of pain signals.
Spiciness isn’t a taste, and more burning facts about the mysterious sensation|Elana Spivack|September 24, 2021|Popular-Science
“We know pain is caused by … abnormal activity in multiple parts of the brain, including the trigeminal nerve, trigeminal nucleus caudalis in the brain stem, and the pain networks,” Starling says.
New drugs that block a brain chemical are game changers for some migraine sufferers|Karen J. Bannan|March 22, 2021|Science News
Migraines involve a series of events in the brain that is still not fully understood, but involves activation of the trigeminal nerve and release of a peptide called CGRP, causing pain in the head, face and jaw, plus other symptoms.
New drugs that block a brain chemical are game changers for some migraine sufferers|Karen J. Bannan|March 22, 2021|Science News

Anteriorly it is pierced by a pair of small foramina through which the ophthalmic branches of the trigeminal nerve pass out.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds
Between the trigeminal and optic foramina are the very small foramina for the sixth nerves (fig. 25, B, VI).
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds
These perforate the palatine and transmit branches of the trigeminal nerve and certain blood-vessels.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds
The epimeral purely sensory nerves to the somatic surface, equivalent in the vertebrate to the ascending root of the trigeminal.
The Origin of Vertebrates|Walter Holbrook Gaskell
All the muscles belonging to this oral chamber are of the visceral type, and are innervated by the trigeminal nerve.
The Origin of Vertebrates|Walter Holbrook Gaskell

British Dictionary definitions for trigeminal

trigeminal

/ (traɪˈdʒɛmɪnəl) /

adjective

anatomy of or relating to the trigeminal nerve

Word Origin for trigeminal

C19: from Latin trigeminus triplet, from tri- + geminus twin

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