distal

adjective

dis·tal | \ ˈdi-stᵊl

Definition of distal

1 anatomy : situated away from the point of attachment or origin or a central point especially of the body — compare proximal the distal ends of the tibia and fibula

2 dentistry : of, relating to, or being the surface of a tooth that is next to the tooth behind it or that is farthest from the middle of the front of the jaw — compare mesial sense 2

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Examples of distal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The location of the fracture determines what that involves—the femoral shaft is divided into thirds: distal, middle, and proximal. — Claire Gillespie, Health.com, "Brooke Shields Broke Her Femur and Is Learning to Walk Again—Here's What a Doctor Says," 22 Feb. 2021 Both the distal tips and the quills at the base are typically overwrapped during the weaving process, with the downy portions exposed. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "How many turkey feathers does it take to make an ancient blanket? 11,500," 28 Nov. 2020 The part at the distal end, namely getting into people's arms, is going to be more challenging than just a regular flu season. — NBC News, "Meet the Press - November 29, 2020," 29 Nov. 2020 Instead only the most distal ones are homologous to digit bones; the proximal radials are homologous to the wrist bones and the long bones of the palm. — John A. Long, Scientific American, "How a 380-Million-Year-Old Fish Gave Us Fingers," 20 May 2020 Shortly after exhuming the finger bone, the anthropologists who made the find cut it in half and sent the proximal end to the Max Planck Institute in Germany and the distal end (the very tip of the finger) to the University of California, Berkeley. — Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, "Denisovan fossil finger points to the timing of Neanderthal evolution," 4 Sep. 2019 Multiple healed scars of the face, chin and volar surface distal phalanges of the fingers of both hands. — Dawn Mitchell, Indianapolis Star, "John Dillinger's last meal included red peppers. What we know about the outlaw's autopsy and burial.," 2 Aug. 2019 Those who scored high on creativity were rated as better at using distal imagination. — Knvul Sheikh, Scientific American, "Creative Types Reserve a Special Corner of the Brain for Dreaming Big," 22 May 2019 By video, the hope for good news is that there is nothing to suggest a distal biceps tendon tear, which would require surgery. — Profootballdoc, sandiegouniontribune.com, "UPDATED: Biceps injury might not even keep Stephon Tuitt out one game," 11 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'distal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near distal

distal convoluted tubule

distale

distance

Statistics for distal

Last Updated

4 Mar 2021

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“Distal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distal. Accessed 10 Apr. 2021.

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More Definitions for distal

distal

adjective

dis·tal | \ ˈdis-tᵊl

Medical Definition of distal

1 : situated away from the point of attachment or origin or a central point: as

a : located away from the center of the body the distal end of a bone — compare proximal sense 1a

b : located away from the mesial plane of the body — compare mesial sense 2

c : of, relating to, or being the surface of a tooth that is next to the following tooth counting from the middle of the front of the upper or lower jaw or that faces the back of the mouth in the case of the last tooth on each side — compare mesial sense 3, proximal sense 1b

2 : physical or social rather than sensory — compare proximal sense 2