amygdala
noun
amyg·da·la
| \ ə-ˈmig-də-lə
\
\
plural amygdalae\ ə-ˈmig-də-ˌlē
, -ˌlī \
, -ˌlī \
Definition of amygdala
: the one of the four basal ganglia in each cerebral hemisphere that is part of the limbic system and consists of an almond-shaped mass of gray matter in the anterior extremity of the temporal lobe
— called also amygdaloid nucleus
Examples of amygdala in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Some of these receptors are located in spots governed by the amygdala, a section of tissue that’s responsible for managing emotions like fear, stress and paranoia. — Maria Loreto, chicagotribune.com, "Why does cannabis make some people freak out?," 9 Sep. 2019 Days, months or years later, when something triggers that unprocessed memory, the amygdala goes into overdrive, resulting in hyperalertness or, at the opposite end of the scale, completely zoning out. — Janey Starling, refinery29.com, "Why We Need To Stop Using 'Triggered' In The Wrong Context," 21 Aug. 2019 The researchers also observed behaviors indicating anxiety in the mice, which led them to believe that the radiation also affected the amygdala. — Ashley Strickland, CNN, "A mission to Mars could cause learning impairment and anxiety, study says," 5 Aug. 2019 Hamann also points out that the smallest resolution Noori and his colleagues used in their brain measures would cover up to 20 percent of the amygdala. — Emily Willingham, Scientific American, "Universal Desire: Men and Women Respond Identically to Erotic Images," 18 July 2019 For example, conservatives tend to have a larger amygdala, the fear center of the brain, and have stronger physiological reactions to unpleasant photos or sounds. — Bill Sullivan, National Geographic, "Why we like what we like: A scientist’s surprising findings," 6 Aug. 2019 The tumor, which turned out to be cancerous, was in my left temporal lobe, specifically the hippocampus and amygdala. — Health.com, "For 6 Years, Doctors Kept Telling Me I Had PMS—but It Turned Out to Be Brain Cancer," 31 July 2019 Researchers have determined the areas of the human brain responsible for our aversion to robots: the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex. — Daisy Hernandez, Popular Mechanics, "The Scientific Reason Some of Us Find Robots Creepy As Hell," 17 July 2019 When a stressor occurs, the amygdala region perceives the threat and sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus, which acts like a command center. — Bridget Alex, Discover Magazine, "What Science Says About Why You're Stressed and How to Cope," 21 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'amygdala.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for amygdala
amygdala
noun
amyg·da·la
| \ ə-ˈmig-də-lə
\
\
plural amygdalae\ -ˌlē
, -ˌlī
\
, -ˌlī
\
Medical Definition of amygdala
: the one of the four basal ganglia in each cerebral hemisphere that is part of the limbic system and consists of an almond-shaped mass of gray matter in the roof of the lateral ventricle
— called also amygdaloid body, amygdaloid nucleus
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