Definition of sternum Sternum

ster•num

We found 6 definitions of sternum from 5 different sources.

What does sternum mean?

Noun Plural: sternums
sternum - the flat bone that articulates with the clavicles and the first seven pairs of ribs
		breastbone
		bone, os a shade of white the color of bleached bones
		pectus, thorax, chest part of an insect's body that bears the wings and legs
		axial skeleton the part of the skeleton that includes the skull and spinal column and sternum and ribs
		corpus sternum, gladiolus the large central part of the breastbone
		manubrium the upper part of the breastbone

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sternum (n.)
A plate of cartilage, or a series of bony or cartilaginous plates or segments, in the median line of the pectoral skeleton of most vertebrates above fishes; the breastbone.
sternum (n.)
The ventral part of any one of the somites of an arthropod.

sternum
stėr′num, n. the breast-bone.—adj. Ster′nal.—n. Sternal′gia, pain about the breast-bone, esp. angina pectoris.—adjs. Sternal′gic; Ster′nebral, pertaining to the Ster′nebra or serial segments of which the sternum of a vertebrate is composed.—n. Ster′nite, the ventral portion of the somite of an arthropod.—adjs. Sternit′ic; Sternocost′al, pertaining to, or connected with, the sternum and ribs: denoting those ribs and muscles attached to the sternum. [Gr. sternon, chest.]