tympanum

views updated May 29 2018

tym·pa·num / ˈtimpənəm/ • n. (pl. -nums or -na / -nə/ ) 1. Anat. & Zool. the tympanic membrane or eardrum. ∎  Entomol. a membrane covering the hearing organ on the leg or body of some insects, sometimes adapted (as in cicadas) for producing sound. ∎  archaic a drum.2. Archit. a vertical recessed triangular space forming the center of a pediment, typically decorated. ∎  a similar space over a door between the lintel and the arch.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

tympanum

views updated May 11 2018

tympanum (tympanic membrane; eardrum) The membrane that separates the outer ear from the middle ear. It vibrates in response to sound waves and transmits these vibrations via the ear ossicles of the middle ear to the site of hearing (the cochlea of the inner ear). In amphibians and some reptiles there is no external ear and the tympanum is exposed at the skin surface.

A Dictionary of Biology

tympanum

views updated May 18 2018

tympanum, tympana. The kettledrum(s) as spelt in medieval documents (sometimes tymbal), but the modern spelling timpani is now standard.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE

tympanum

views updated May 29 2018

tympanum drum, tambourine, etc.; ear-drum. XVII. — L. — Gr. túmpanon drum, f. nasalized var. of base of túptein strike.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

tympanum

views updated May 29 2018

tympanum See TYMPANIC MEMBRANE.

A Dictionary of Zoology MICHAEL ALLABY

tympanum

views updated May 14 2018

tympanum (timp-ă-nŭm) n. the middle ear (tympanic cavity) and/or the eardrum (tympanic membrane).

A Dictionary of Nursing

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