Word
ligament
Phoneticslig·a·ment
US/ˈɫɪɡəmənt/
UK/lˈɪɡəmənt/
Definitions
01body tissue
n. a strong, flexible band of tissue that connects two bones in your body.
n. a short band of tough, flexible fibrous connective tissue which connects two bones or cartilages or holds together a joint.
“The athlete had to stop playing after he tore a ligament in his ankle.”
“The surgeon explained that the anterior cruciate ligament is essential for maintaining stability during lateral movements of the knee joint.”
Technical
Usage
Usually countable; frequently occurs with verbs like 'tear', 'stretch', or 'repair'.
Pitfall
He tore a ligament in his muscle.
He tore a ligament in his knee.
Ligaments connect bones to other bones; tendons connect muscles to bones.
Synonyms
02a binding force
n. something that joins or holds different people or things together.
n. a thing that serves as a bond or connecting link between different entities.
“Shared values are the ligament that holds a community together.”
“The historian argued that a common language served as the primary ligament of the empire, uniting diverse cultures under a single administrative framework.”
Literary · Formal
Real-World Examples
“In humans, however, that ability is thought to depend more heavily on flexible ligaments, tendons, and muscles than on the structure of the foot bones.” “The newly identified Scx enhancer directs Scx gene expression specifically in tendons, ligaments and their attachment sites during development.” Etymology
From Middle English ligament, from Latin ligāmentum, from ligō (“tie, bind”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Domain
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/ligament