Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Anatomy A sheet or band of tough, fibrous tissue connecting bones or cartilages at a joint or supporting an organ.
- n. A unifying or connecting tie or bond.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A connecting tie or band; anything that binds objects or their parts together; any bond of union, material or immaterial.
- n. Specifically— In anatomy, a band of connective tissue serving to bind one part to another. Most ligaments have a particular shape, site, and office, and consequently receive special names. See phrases following.
- n. In conchology, a band of uncalcified chitinous cuticular substance which unites the valves of a bivalve shell. It is usually elastic, and so disposed that when the valves are closed it is either compressed or put upon the stretch, in either of which opposite cases it antagonizes the action of the adductor muscles and tends to divaricate the valves.
- n. Of the uterus, the fold of peritoneum which extends from the uterus to the pelvis on either side.
- n. Of the liver, the impervious cord formed by the umbilical vein, passing from the navel to the under surface of the liver.
- n. Of the uterus, a rounded cord on each side between the layers of the broad ligament, passing from the upper part of the womb to the internal abdominal ring and thence through the inguinal canal to the labia majora, consisting of fibrous, areolar, and some muscular tissue, with vessels and nerves inclosed in a fold of peritoneum. It corresponds in part to the spermatic cord of the male.
- n. Of the mammæ, processes of the superficial thoracic fascia entering and supporting these glands.
- n. Of the penis, the fibrous attachment of the root of the organ to the symphysis pubis.
- n. Of the spleen, a fold of peritoneum connecting the spleen with the diaphragm.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. Anything that ties or unites one thing or part to another; a bandage; a bond.
- n. A tough band or plate of dense, fibrous, connective tissue or fibrocartilage serving to unite bones or form joints.
- n. A band of connective tissue, or a membranous fold, which supports or retains an organ in place.
WordNet 3.0
- n. any connection or unifying bond
- n. a sheet or band of tough fibrous tissue connecting bones or cartilages or supporting muscles or organs
Etymologies
- From Latin ligāmentum, from ligō ("tie, bind"). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, from Medieval Latin ligāmentum, from Latin, bandage, from ligāre, to bind; see lien. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“To fix it, he has to graft ligament to it from somewhere else on my body or use a synthetic ligament or — wait for it — he can graft bone and ligament from a cadaver.”
“In ground hornbills the anatomy of the quadratomandibular ligament makes it impossible for the upper jaw to be raised or lowered without an automatic lowering or raising of the lower jaw, and the ligament is so strong that the lower jaw stays connected to the skull even in dried skeletons (Burton 1984).”
“It's believed the ligament is torn, but Smith was to get”
“This ligament is short, flat, strong, and rhomboid in form.”
III. Syndesmology. 6. Articulations of the Upper Extremity. a. Sternoclavicular Articulation
“It's technically known as ligament replacement surgery, but most people call the procedure that Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg will undergo Tommy John surgery.”
The Washington Post: Stephen Strasburg: What is Tommy John surgery?
“One of them was to mend a torn anterior cruciate ligament, which is the procedure Mr. Woods announced Wednesday that he will have done soon and that will cause him to miss the rest of the season.”
“Doctors say that when people tear their ACL, their anterior cruciate ligament, which is what's happened here to Tiger Woods, they feel it and it pops in their knee and they can tell and it is painful.”
“` ` We were worried that the ligament was a little unstable.”
“He tore his anterior cruciate ligament, which is doctor talk for broken dreams.”
“Its weakest part, i. e., the part most liable to yield from overpressure, is the joint between the talus and navicular, but this portion is braced by the plantar calcaneonavicular ligament, which is elastic and is thus able to quickly restore the arch to its pristine condition when the disturbing force is removed.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘ligament’.
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11250 more...
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Skeleton
Bones! (and other stuff)
cranium, vertebrae, cervical vertebrae, thoriac vertebrae, lumbar vertebrae, clavicle, rib cage, sternum, pelvis, coccyx, scapula, radius and 19 more...
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connexion
link, joining, junction, concatenation, hookup, isthmus, ligament, articulation, node, tie, relation, intersection and 86 more...
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anatomy
knee
medial, meniscal, condyle, collateral, ligament, femur, patelle, tibia
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Anatomically Correct
canthus, vibrissa, femoral, sphenoid, dura mater, pia mater, epiglottis, glottis, mons veneris, plaque, tibia, ulna and 96 more...
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The Sog Collection
My big word list.
chaos, flaccid, empirical, flotsam, cacophony, grumble, assuage, awe, romance, mortality, coalesce, fortuitous and 3282 more...
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Just 'cause I like 'em, L
lisle, lahar, loupe, labret, latten, luster, lagomorph, lamentation, limicole, lunge, lobtail, latifolious and 182 more...
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Jigsaw Codex
List? What list?
This is the list that makes up the world.cat, boustrophedon, syndetic, life, imbroglio, interlude, composition, investigation, cantankerous, him, sign, universality and 189 more...
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5-0
Hecko, words! I’m so happy I’ve found you. I want to keep you all and never want to lose you again. I hope you like it here.
amscray, thistledown, tine, tinsel, pungent, snarl, wail, lanky, viscid, dawdle, luminous, stow and 2719 more...
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wordsmithing part deux
because wordsmith is not a verb.
enmity, incarnate, chignon, nape, solitude, nocturne, decorum, warren, svelte, interstice, serene, charlotte and 488 more...
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big book gre
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 6691 more...
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tissue
parenchyma, cartilage, stroma, fascia, gristle, skin, xylem, keloid, cementum, ligament, dissepiment
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blame's Words
torque, logomancy, velocity, vector, cantankerous, pap, lynchpin, toggle, unguent, solipsism, trebuchet, brunt and 44 more...
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Words I hate
hibiscus, meniscus, supper, pickle, cherub, puppy, tummy, hubris, curd, plump, wheezing, bumpkin and 12 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for ligament.

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