Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
risorius

risorius

9.9
A thin face muscle that pulls the mouth sideways when you smile
  • noun
  • /rɪˈzɔːr.i.əs/
  • Specialized
: risorio
  • When he smiled for the photo, his risorius worked to pull his lips back into a cheerful expression.

Examples

  • The risorius muscle helps create a wide smile by pulling the corners of the mouth to the sides.

  • During the anatomical dissection, we observed how the risorius contracts to form a grin.

  • -- the marginal mandibular branch to the risorius muscle and the muscles of the lower lip and chin

    Academic text (2003)

Surface Forms

risorius singular
risorii plural

Etymology

The word risorius comes from the Latin risus, which means 'laugh', so it is named for the muscle that pulls the corner of the mouth sideways when you smile or laugh.