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xiphoid

American  
[zif-oid] / ˈzɪf ɔɪd /

adjective

  1. Anatomy, Zoology.  sword-shaped; ensiform.


noun

  1. the xiphisternum.

xiphoid British  
/ ˈzɪfɔɪd /

adjective

  1. biology shaped like a sword

  2. of or relating to the xiphisternum

"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

noun

  1. Also called: xiphoid process.  Another name for xiphisternum

"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

Other Word Forms

  • postxiphoid adjective

Etymology

Origin of xiphoid

1740–50; < New Latin xiphoīdēs < Greek xiphoeidḗs swordlike, equivalent to xíph ( os ) sword + -oeidēs -oid

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.

“Just to the bottom of the xiphoid process,” Ms. Boyle said.

From New York Times

Actually, the “lump” is the xiphoid process, the quarter-size cartilaginous end of the bony sternum.

From Washington Post

Two little girls were united from the xiphoid cartilage to the umbilicus.

From Project Gutenberg

The posterior extremity of the sternum, flattened from above downwards, ends in a cartilaginous plate; concave superiorly, and convex inferiorly: this is the abdominal prolongation, or xiphoid appendix.

From Project Gutenberg

Passing between the xiphoid and costal origins in front are the superior epigastric arteries, while the other terminal branches of the internal mammaries, the musculo-phrenics, pass through between two costal origins.

From Project Gutenberg