What does meatus mean?
Meatus is a formal noun meaning a passage, channel, or opening, most often used in anatomy. Its best-known application is the auditory or acoustic meatus, the canal leading from the outer ear toward the eardrum. Doctors also speak of other meatuses when referring to openings in bones or other parts of the body. Outside medicine, the word can describe any narrow route through a larger structure, such as a passage through rock or a building, but this broader use is uncommon and technical. Meatus comes from Latin, where it referred to a passage or channel and was related to meare, “to go.” The word is useful because it names the specific anatomical feature more precisely than a general term such as opening or canal. It also has an unusual grammatical feature: meatus can serve as both the singular and the plural form in anatomical usage, while meatuses is also accepted.
nounA passage, channel, or natural opening, especially an anatomical canal such as the external auditory meatus, the opening of the ear. In general or technical use, it refers to a narrow route or passage through a structure.
- An anatomical passage or canal, especially the opening of the ear.
- A narrow passage, channel, or opening through a structure, in general or technical usage.
"The otoscope allowed the physician to examine the auditory meatus and the eardrum."
"The external auditory meatus carries sound waves toward the eardrum."
"A narrow meatus through the rock provided access to the cave."
In anatomical usage, meatus is commonly both singular and plural; meatuses is also an accepted plural.
"The surgeon examined the auditory meatus on both sides."
Meatus can be both singular and plural, making it an anatomical word with a grammatical twist.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does meatus come from?
The English word meatus comes from Latin meatus, meaning “a passage” or “channel,” derived from meare, “to go.” Latin forms meaning “to go through,” including those behind permeate and impermeable, preserve the same verbal root in English derivatives. The anatomical sense developed from the word’s general meaning of a passage or channel, particularly an opening such as that of the ear.
Related word forms
How meatus is actually used
The word is formal and primarily technical or anatomical. In medicine, meatus commonly names a specific opening or canal; in broader writing, it can refer to any narrow passage. In anatomical contexts, the singular and plural may both be meatus, although meatuses is also used.