Standard Lemma guide

stapedius

noun · 1 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

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  • General-American: /stəˈpi.di.əs/
  • rhymes with -iːdiəs

1

noun

Meaning 1

A small muscle of the middle ear that arises from the wall of the tympanum and is inserted into the neck of the stapes by a tendon that sometimes contains a slender spine of bone; it is the smallest skeletal muscle in the human body, serving to stabilize the stapes to check and dampen its vibration.

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

History

Etymology

Borrowed from New Latin stapedius, clipping of mūsculus stapedius (“stapedial muscle”). Doublet of stapedial.

Across languages

Translations

6 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 鐙骨肌 /镫骨肌 (dènggǔjī) — muscle
  • Finnish: jalustinlihas — muscle
  • Italian: stapedio — muscle
  • Italian: muscolo stapedio — muscle
  • Japanese: 鐙骨筋 (abumikotsukin) — muscle
  • Spanish: músculo del estribo — muscle