cranium
/ˈkɹeɪ.ni.əm/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 2.64 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
That part of the skull consisting of the bones enclosing the brain, but not including the bones of the face or jaw.
Example Sentences
- "The Skull is divided into two parts, the Cranium and the Face. The Cranium is composed of eight bones; […]"
- "‘I always ask leave, in the interests of science, to measure the crania of those going out there,’ he said."
- "The cranium of the fowl is composed of the same elements as are present in the mammalian cranium, save that there is no interparietal."
- "The cranial bones, or cranium (kra′ne-um), enclose and protect the fragile brain and furnish attachment sites for head and neck muscles."
- ""The cranium is clearly plesiomorphic in overall form, presenting primitive traits shared by earlier hominins," the authors wrote."
- "In this study, the cranium recovered from the River Witham in Lincoln exhibited a black metallic staining on the surfaces of the teeth."
Etymology
From Medieval Latin crānium (“skull”), from Ancient Greek κρᾱνίον (krāníon, “skull”). By surface analysis, crani- + -um.
Word Breakdown
- Root: *ḱerh₂-, crānium