inner ear

inner ear

noun

Definition of INNER EAR

: the essential organ of hearing and equilibrium that is located in the temporal bone, is innervated by the auditory nerve, and includes the vestibule, the semicircular canals, and the cochlea

First Known Use of INNER EAR

1855

Rhymes with INNER EAR

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inner ear

noun    (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of INNER EAR

: the essential part of the vertebrate organ of hearing and equilibrium that typically is located in the temporal bone, is innervated by the auditory nerve, and includes the vestibule, the semicircular canals, and the cochlea—called also internal ear

inner ear

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Part of the ear containing organs of hearing and equilibrium. The bony labyrinth has three sections (semicircular canals, vestibule, and cochlea); within each structure is a corresponding part of the membranous labyrinth (semicircular ducts, two saclike structures in the vestibule, and cochlear duct). Sound vibrations are transmitted from the middle ear through the membrane-covered oval window to fluid in the snail-shell-shaped cochlea, whose motion stimulates hair cells in the cochlea. The hair cells trigger nerve impulses that travel to the brain, which interprets them as sound. The vestibule and semicircular canals also have organs with hair cells. Those in the vestibule indicate the head's position with respect to the rest of the body (see proprioception). The three semicircular canals, at right angles to each other, signal motion of the head in three-dimensional space. Continued stimulation after motion stops causes a mismatch with visual input, experienced as dizziness or motion sickness.

Variants of INNER EAR

inner ear or labyrinth of the ear