femur
Americannoun
plural
femurs, femora-
Anatomy. a bone in the human leg extending from the pelvis to the knee, that is the longest, largest, and strongest in the body; thighbone.
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Zoology. a corresponding bone of the leg or hind limb of an animal.
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Entomology. the third segment of the leg of an insect (counting from the base), situated between the trochanter and the tibia.
noun
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Nontechnical name: thighbone. the longest thickest bone of the human skeleton, articulating with the pelvis above and the knee below
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the corresponding bone in other vertebrates
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the segment of an insect's leg nearest to the body
Etymology
Origin of femur
1555–65; < Latin: thigh
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.
Far out in the desert, the researchers gaped at the six-foot-long femur, the jaw, teeth, and base of the crest.
From Barron's
The new method, developed in the US, involved placing a lengthening nail - known as a motorised telescopic nail - on the surface of Alfie's femur, the long bone in the thigh.
From BBC
Researchers have so far recovered 49 bone pieces including a femur, vertebrae and ribs, it added.
From Barron's
"Mum tried to get to the bathroom in the night, slipped on water from a leak the hotel had already been told about, and fell. We later learned she'd broken her femur."
From BBC
An MRI eventually revealed that the top of his femur, or thigh bone, was near fracture.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
