Phrase guide

vertebral column

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

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1

noun

Meaning 1

The series of vertebrae that protect the spinal cord; the spinal column.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: anatomy, medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: backbone, spinal column, spine

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

the series of vertebrae forming the axis of the skeleton and protecting the spinal cord

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the fall broke his back

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: spinal column, spine, backbone, back, rachis

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: skeletal structure

Narrower terms: notochord, chine

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

61 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: shtyllë kurrizore — vertebral column
  • Amharic: አከርካሪ (ʾäkärkari) — vertebral column
  • Arabic: عَمُود فِقْرِيّ (ʕamūd fiqriyy) — vertebral column
  • Armenian: ողնաշար (oġnašar) — vertebral column
  • Bashkir: умыртҡа (umırtqa) — vertebral column
  • Bashkir: умыртҡа бағанаһы (umırtqa bağanahı) — vertebral column
  • Bulgarian: гръбначен стълб (grǎbnačen stǎlb) — vertebral column
  • Catalan: columna vertebral — vertebral column
  • Cebuano: butagtok — vertebral column
  • Chinese Mandarin: 脊椎 (jǐzhuī) — vertebral column
  • Chinese Mandarin: 脊柱 (jǐzhù) — vertebral column
  • Chinese Mandarin: 脊梁骨 (jǐlianggǔ) — vertebral column
  • Danish: hvirvelsøjle — vertebral column
  • Danish: rygrad — vertebral column
  • Danish: rygsøjle — vertebral column
  • Dutch: wervelkolom — vertebral column
  • Esperanto: vertebraro — vertebral column
  • Finnish: selkäranka — vertebral column
  • French: colonne vertébrale — vertebral column
  • Galician: columna vertebral — vertebral column
  • German: Wirbelsäule — vertebral column
  • German: Rückgrat — vertebral column
  • Greek: σπονδυλική στήλη (spondylikí stíli) — vertebral column
  • Ancient Greek: ῥάχις (rhákhis) — vertebral column
  • Hungarian: gerincoszlop — vertebral column
  • Irish: colún veirteabrach — vertebral column
  • Italian: colonna vertebrale — vertebral column
  • Japanese: 脊椎 (sekitsui) — vertebral column
  • Japanese: 脊柱 (sekichū) — vertebral column
  • Kazakh: омыртқа бағанасы (omyrtqa bağanasy) — vertebral column
  • Khmer: ឆ្អឹងខ្នង (c’əŋ knɑɑŋ) — vertebral column
  • Korean: 척주 (cheokju) — vertebral column
  • Northern Kurdish: birrbirreya piştê — vertebral column
  • Latin: columna vertebralis — vertebral column
  • Norwegian Bokmål: ryggsøyle — vertebral column
  • Norwegian Bokmål: virvelsøyle — vertebral column
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: ryggsøyle — vertebral column
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: virvelsøyle — vertebral column
  • Occitan: colomna vertebrala — vertebral column
  • Polish: kręgosłup — vertebral column
  • Portuguese: coluna vertebral — vertebral column
  • Romanian: șira spinării — vertebral column
  • Romanian: coloană vertebrală — vertebral column
  • Russian: позвоно́чный столб (pozvonóčnyj stolb) — vertebral column
  • Russian: спинно́й хребе́т (spinnój xrebét) — vertebral column
  • Russian: позвоно́чник (pozvonóčnik) — vertebral column
  • Russian: хребе́т (xrebét) — vertebral column
  • Serbo-Croatian: кра́љежница — vertebral column
  • Serbo-Croatian: králježnica — vertebral column
  • Spanish: columna vertebral — vertebral column
  • Swahili: uti wa mgongo — vertebral column
  • Swedish: ryggrad — vertebral column
  • Swedish: kotpelare — vertebral column
  • Tagalog: guluguran — vertebral column
  • Tagalog: bangananan — vertebral column
  • Ukrainian: хребе́тний стовп (xrebétnyj stovp) — vertebral column
  • Vietnamese: cột sống — vertebral column
  • Vietnamese: xương sống — vertebral column
  • Volapük: bäkabom — vertebral column
  • Welsh: colofn cefn — vertebral column
  • Welsh: colofn sbinol — vertebral column