mandible

/ˈmændɪbl/ (bre, ipa) · [mˈændəbəl] /ˈmændɪbl/ (ame, ipa) · [mˈændəbəl] /ˈman-də-bəl How to pronounce mandible (audio)/ (ame, mw)

mandible — noun

  • mandiblesingular
  • mandiblesplural

1. the hard bone that forms the lower jaw area in a human or another animal.

1.名詞C2
釋義

the hard bone that forms the lower jaw area in a human or another animal.

例句

After the fall, Sofia could not move her mandible without pain.

medical context: move the mandible after injury

The dentist showed Jude where the mandible joins the skull.

anatomy pattern: the mandible joins the skull

同義詞
  • jawbone

    focuses on the bone itself and can be less technical

  • lower jaw

    more everyday wording for the same body part

反義詞
  • maxilla

    the upper jaw rather than the lower one

用法筆記

Usually used in medical, scientific, or anatomical writing. Distinguish it from everyday jaw, which is broader and less technical.

2. one of the hard mouth parts at the front of an insect or similar small creature,

2.名詞C2
釋義

one of the hard mouth parts at the front of an insect or similar small creature, used to grip, cut, or crush food.

例句

The ant gripped the seed with one mandible and dragged it home.

with one mandible showing the paired mouthparts

In class, Rin drew each mandible of the cricket in detail.

同義詞
  • jaw

    a broad non-technical substitute that loses the exact anatomical sense

  • mouthpart

    broader term that names the structure class, not this specific pair

反義詞
  • beak

    used for birds rather than insects or similar small creatures

用法筆記

Often appears in biology or entomology writing, and plural mandibles is common when both paired parts are mentioned together. Distinguish this sense from sense 3, which refers to the halves of a bird's bill.

常見錯誤

❌The beetle bit the leaf with its beak.
✅The beetle bit the leaf with its mandibles.
💡insects do not have beaks; mandibles are their biting mouthparts.

3. one half of a bird's bill, on the upper side or the lower side.

3.名詞C2
釋義

one half of a bird's bill, on the upper side or the lower side.

例句

The keeper checked whether the parrot had chipped its lower mandible.

bird anatomy: lower mandible

Salma noticed mud stuck to the duck's upper mandible.

bird anatomy: upper mandible

同義詞
  • upper bill

    only matches when the top half is meant

  • lower bill

    only matches when the bottom half is meant

用法筆記

This sense is mainly used in bird anatomy, often with upper or lower before the noun. Distinguish it from sense 1, which is the lower jaw of mammals and other animals.