Meaning & use
postcranial
Last updated
Meaning
adjectivebefore a nountechnicalspecialist
Relating to the parts of the body below or behind the skull, especially the skeleton.
Grammar: Used before a noun: postcranial skeleton, postcranial bones.
Patterns
- postcranial skeleton
- postcranial bones
- postcranial anatomy
The fossil includes a nearly complete postcranial skeleton.
Researchers compared postcranial bones from several early human relatives.
The skull was missing, so the team studied only the postcranial remains.
Common combinations
- postcranial skeleton
- The postcranial skeleton shows adaptations for climbing.
- postcranial bones
- The postcranial bones were too fragmentary to measure accurately.
- postcranial remains
- Only postcranial remains were found at the site.
Synonyms and how they differ
- skeletal
- Skeletal is broader and can refer to the whole skeleton, including the skull, while postcranial specifically excludes the skull.
Opposites
Word family
- cranial adjective
- Relating to the skull.
- postcranium noun
- The part of the skeleton below the skull.
Commonly confused: postcranial or cranial?
postcranial vs cranial
Cranial refers to the skull, while postcranial refers to everything below the skull.
Practice
Which phrase correctly uses the word postcranial?
Choose one answer.
Postcranial means below or behind the skull, so it describes the skeleton, not the skull, brain, or head itself.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “postcranial”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.