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Glite Dictionary
scaphoid

scaphoid

9.8
Shaped like a small boat, especially a bone in the wrist
  • adjective
  • /ˈskæfoʊɪd/
  • Specialized
translation icon : escafoide
  • The scaphoid bones in the wrist are named for their boat-like shape.

Examples

  • Some shells have a distinctly scaphoid form, curving gently like the hull of a small boat.

  • The doctor pointed out the scaphoid contour of the bone on the X-ray image.

  • Some shells have a distinctly scaphoid form, curving gentle like the hull of a small boat.

  • The scaphoid has a boat-like shape.

  • The scaphoid is shaped like a small boat.

  • The scaphoid bones in the wrist are named for their boat-like shape.

  • The doctor pointed out the scaphoid contour of the bone on the X-ray image.

Synonyms

navicular
vsscaphoid
  • Specialized
9.9

Shaped like a small boat

refers specifically to boat-shaped bones in the body

Compounds

scaphoid bone
  • Specialized
1 7.8

A small wrist bone on the thumb side that often breaks in falls

Surface Forms

scaphoid positive

Morphology

scaphoid = scapho + oid

The suffix '-oid' means 'resembling' (so 'boat-shaped'), but the combining form 'scapho-' is a specialized Greek medical form unfamiliar to average learners, so the relation is only partly transparent.

Etymology

Scaphoid comes from Greek parts scaph- 'boat' and -oid 'like', the same -oid you see in asteroid. So scaphoid means 'boat-shaped', which is why the scaphoid bone in the wrist or any scaphoid object looks like a small boat.