Meaning & use

thorax

noun·Academic

The part of the body between the neck and the abdomen, containing the heart and lungs; also an insect's midsection.

See it in a sentence

The doctor listened to his thorax with a stethoscope to check his breathing.

A beetle's legs and wings are attached to its thorax, the middle segment of its body.

A note on using this word

In anatomy it names the chest region of vertebrates; in entomology it names the insect body segment between the head and abdomen.

Words with a similar meaning

chest

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