Dictionary
pectoral girdle
noun
Definition of PECTORAL GIRDLE
ADVERTISEMENT
First Known Use of PECTORAL GIRDLE
circa 1890
Medical Dictionary
pectoral girdle
noun
Medical Definition of PECTORAL GIRDLE
: the bony or cartilaginous arch supporting the forelimbs of a vertebrate that corresponds to the pelvic girdle of the hind limbs but is usually not attached to the spinal column and that consists in lower forms of a single cartilage on each side which in higher forms becomes ossified, divided into the scapula above and the precoracoid and coracoid below, and complicated by the addition or substitution of one or more membrane bones and which in humans is highly modified with the scapula alone of the original elements well developed, the coracoid being represented only by the coracoid process of the scapula, and the precoracoid being replaced by the clavicle that connects the scapula with the sternum and is the only bony connection of the arm bones with the rest of the skeleton—called also shoulder girdle
Learn More About PECTORAL GIRDLE
Browse
Next Word in the Dictionary: pectoral limbPrevious Word in the Dictionary: pectoral finAll Words Near: pectoral girdle
ADVERTISEMENT
Seen & Heard
What made you want to look up pectoral girdle? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).