Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The end of a long bone that is originally separated from the main bone by a layer of cartilage but later becomes united to the main bone through ossification.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In anatomy: A part or process of bone which has its own center of ossification separate from the main center of the shaft or body of the bone, and which therefore only gradually joins the rest of the bone by the progress of ossification: so called because it grows upon the body of the bone.
  • noun Some part or organ that grows upon or to another.
  • noun A small superior piece of each half of an alveolus of a sea-urchin, united below to its own half of the alveolus, joined to its fellow of the other half of the same alveolus, and connected by the rotula with the epiphysis of another alveolus. See lantern of Aristotle, under lantern.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The end, or other superficial part, of a bone, which ossifies separately from the central portion, or diaphysis.
  • noun The cerebral epiphysis, or pineal gland. See Pineal gland, under pineal.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun anatomy The pineal gland.
  • noun anatomy The rounded end of any long bone.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a small endocrine gland in the brain; situated beneath the back part of the corpus callosum; secretes melatonin
  • noun the end of a long bone; initially separated from the main bone by a layer of cartilage that eventually ossifies so the parts become fused

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Greek epiphusis, an excrescence : epi-, epi- + phusis, growth; see bheuə- in Indo-European roots.]

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Examples

  • Veeramani made her way through the earlier rounds Friday night, spelling "epiphysis" and "juvia" with ease.

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  • Our expert team treats hip disorders and deformities such as hip dysplasia and dislocation, slipped capital femoral epiphysis, Legg-Calve-Perthes disease, infection and chondrolysis.

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  • Our expert team treats hip disorders and deformities such as hip dysplasia and dislocation, slipped capital femoral epiphysis, Legg-Calve-Perthes disease, infection and chondrolysis.

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  • It was the newest rod available, and it threaded into the epiphysis, whatever that was, which kept it from migrating, like the older rods used to.

    Handle with Care JODI PICOULT 2009

  • A radial epiphysis the growth ends of the other forearm bone.

    Smoke, Mirrors, and Murder Ann Rule 2008

  • He argued that the “worm-like appendage” [epiphysis or apophysis] of the cerebellum (nowadays known as the vermis superior cerebelli) is much better qualified to play this role (Kühn 1822, pp. 674-683; May 1968, vol. 1, pp. 418-423).

    Descartes and the Pineal Gland Lokhorst, Gert-Jan 2008

  • Sometimes the epiphysis is displaced, and sometimes there is displacement (diastasis) of the one bone from the other.

    Instruments Of Reduction 2007

  • The head of the humerus is articulated with its (glenoid?) cavity, by means of a small ligament, and it consists of a rounded epiphysis composed of spongy cartilage, the humerus itself is bent outward and forward, and it is articulated with its (glenoid?) cavity by its side, and not in a straight line.

    Instruments Of Reduction 2007

  • When the foot is dislocated, either alone, or with the epiphysis, the displacement is more apt to be inward.

    Instruments Of Reduction 2007

  • The vertebrae on the inside are regularly placed upon one another, but behind they are connected by a cartilaginous ligament; they are articulated in the form of synarthrosis at the back part of the spinal marrow; behind they have a sharp process having a cartilaginous epiphysis, whence proceeds the roots of nerves running downward, as also muscles extending from the neck to the loins, and filling the space between the ribs and the spine.

    Instruments Of Reduction 2007

Comments

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  • What makes growth possible for children and impossible for adults is this: During our youth, the ends of our long bones—called the epiphyses—are not yet fused to the shafts; instead they're connected to the shafts by cartilage, allowing the shafts to grow throughout childhood. Beginning in early adolescence, the epiphyses begin to fuse, gradually halting the growth of the bone shafts and bringing an end to that remarkable growth spurt occurring around puberty.
    Dr. Bill Bass & Jon Jefferson, Beyond the Body Farm: A Legendary Bone Detective Explores Murders, Mysteries, and the Revolution in Forensic Science (New York: William Morrow, 2007)

    December 26, 2015