semicircular canal

noun

Definition of semicircular canal

: any of the loop-shaped tubular parts of the labyrinth of the ear that together constitute a sensory organ associated with the maintenance of bodily equilibrium — see ear illustration

Examples of semicircular canal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That system operates as the body’s balance organ; its three semicircular canals are filled with fluid and tiny hair cells that sense in which direction the body is moving. Heidi Mitchell, WSJ, "What’s the Remedy for Car Sickness?," 15 Aug. 2018 But a tiny semicircular canal in the skull suggests was markedly different from gibbons, reports Dvorsky. Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "Is This Baby Animal the Last Common Ancestor of Humans and Apes?," 10 Aug. 2017

First Known Use of semicircular canal

1748, in the meaning defined above

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More Definitions for semicircular canal

semicircular canal

noun
semi·​cir·​cu·​lar canal | \ -ˌsər-kyə-lər- How to pronounce semicircular canal (audio) \

Medical Definition of semicircular canal

: any of the loop-shaped tubular parts of the labyrinth of the ear that together constitute a sensory organ associated with the maintenance of bodily equilibrium, that consist of an inner membranous canal of the membranous labyrinth and a corresponding outer bony canal of the bony labyrinth, and that in all vertebrates above cyclostomes form a group of three in each ear usually in planes nearly at right angles to each other — see semicircular duct