tympanum
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.
tympanum
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.
tympanum
tympanum, tympana. The kettledrum(s) as spelt in medieval documents (sometimes tymbal), but the modern spelling timpani is now standard.
tympanum
tympanum drum, tambourine, etc.; ear-drum. XVII. — L. — Gr. túmpanon drum, f. nasalized var. of base of túptein strike.
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