temporal bone

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. Either of a pair of compound bones forming the sides and base of the skull.

Wiktionary

1. n. Either of two compound bones that collectively make up the sides and base of the skull.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. adj. a very complex bone situated in the side of the skull of most mammals and containing the organ of hearing. It consists of an expanded squamosal portion above the ear, corresponding to the squamosal and zygoma of the lower vertebrates, and a thickened basal petrosal and mastoid portion, corresponding to the periotic and tympanic bones of the lower vertebrates.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a thick bone forming the side of the human cranium and encasing the inner ear