Standard Lemma guide

olecranon

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • General-American: /oʊˈlɛkɹəˌnɑn/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • UK: /əˈlɛkɹənən/

1

noun

Meaning 1

The bony process at the top of the ulna forming the point of the elbow.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: anatomy, medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

process of the ulna that forms the outer bump of the elbow and fits into the fossa of the humerus when the arm is extended

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: olecranon process

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: process, outgrowth, appendage

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Ancient Greek ὠλένη (ōlénē) Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- Proto-Indo-European *-h2 ? Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh2- Proto-Indo-European *-ō Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥h2-(e)s-n- Proto-Hellenic *kárahə Ancient Greek *κρᾱν- (*krān-) Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Ancient Greek -ῐος (-ĭos)? Ancient Greek -ῐ́ον (-ĭ́on) Ancient Greek κρᾱνίον (krāníon) Ancient Greek ὠλέκρανον (ōlékranon)bor. English olecranon Borrowed from Ancient Greek ὠλέκρανον (ōlékranon).

Across languages

Translations

19 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: نَاتِئ مِرْفَقِيّ (nātiʔ mirfaqiyy) — bony process
  • Arabic: طَرَف الْمِرْفَق (ṭaraf al-mirfaq) — bony process
  • Arabic: نُتُوء الْمِرْفَق (nutūʔ al-mirfaq) — bony process
  • Arabic: زُجّ (zujj) — bony process
  • Arabic: نَاتِئ زُجِّيّ لِلزَّنْد — bony process
  • Catalan: olècran — bony process
  • Catalan: olècranon — bony process
  • Czech: okovec — bony process
  • Esperanto: olekrano — bony process
  • Finnish: kyynärlisäke — bony process
  • French: olécrane — bony process
  • German: Olecranon — bony process
  • German: Hakenfortsatz — bony process
  • Hungarian: könyöknyúlvány — bony process
  • Italian: olecrano — bony process
  • Polish: wyrostek łokciowy — bony process
  • Spanish: olécranon — bony process
  • Swedish: olekranon — bony process
  • Ottoman Turkish: ابره (ibre) — bony process