femur

noun

fe·mur | \ ˈfē-mər

plural femurs or femora\ ˈfe-mə-rə

, ˈfem-rə \

Definition of femur

1 : the proximal bone of the hind or lower limb that extends from the hip to the knee

— called also thighbone

2 : the segment of an insect's leg that is third from the body

Examples of femur in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The batch of limbs from the pit bore the same smooth sawing of the stray femur Owsley and Bruwelheide had rebuilt before its discovery. — Ryan P. Smith, Smithsonian, "Newly Unearthed Civil War Bones Speak Silently to the Grim Aftermath of Battle," 20 June 2018 Paramedics arriving at the scene determined the man had suffered bilateral femur fractures to both legs as well as an unspecified back injury, the release said. — Dom Calicchio, Fox News, "Illegal border-crosser breaks both legs after fall from top of wall, Border Patrol says," 9 Aug. 2018 The posterior approach, the main hip replacement method for many years, involves accessing the hip joint through an incision in the back of the leg – near the top of the femur. — Tj Gibson, azcentral, "Looking at hip replacement differently," 5 Mar. 2018 This same study from the early 1990s noted increasing mortality for those suffering fractures at older ages, with those over the age of 90 facing 66 percent mortality in the year following proximal femur fractures. — Farah Naz Khan, Vox, "Doctors are blasé about bone health and it’s leading to more broken bones in the elderly," 30 July 2018 Researchers examined collagen from the man’s right femur and a rib, according to a study published in 2015 in Radiocarbon. — Mark Barna, Discover Magazine, "When Farmers and Foragers First Met," 24 Oct. 2018 Two of those hospitalized were in stable condition while one woman was in serious condition with a fractured femur. — Nicole Darrah, Fox News, "Lava explosion near Hawaii tour boat injures at least 23," 16 July 2018 Shimomura suffered femur and pelvis injuries after being hit by an ambulance in a crosswalk while walking home from practice. — Jeff Metcalfe, azcentral, "College notebook: NCAA hockey champ to play at ASU," 10 May 2018 Then in the early 2000s, alarming news reports began to appear linking extended use of bisphosphonates to two uncommon bone problems: a very rare fracture of the femur and an even rarer condition called osteonecrosis of the jaw. — Jane E. Brody, New York Times, "A Perfect Storm for Broken Bones," 12 Feb. 2018

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

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Last Updated

12 Jun 2019

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Time Traveler for femur

The first known use of femur was circa 1726

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More Definitions for femur

femur

noun

English Language Learners Definition of femur

medical : the long bone in the upper part of the leg

See the full definition for femur in the English Language Learners Dictionary

femur

noun

fe·mur | \ ˈfē-mər

plural femurs or femora\ ˈfe-mə-rə \

Kids Definition of femur

: the long leg bone that extends from the hip to the knee

femur

noun

fe·mur | \ ˈfē-mər

plural femurs or femora\ ˈfem-(ə-)rə

Medical Definition of femur

1 : the proximal bone of the hind or lower limb that is the longest and largest bone in the human body, extends from the hip to the knee, articulates above with the acetabulum by a rounded head connected with the shaft of the bone by an oblique neck bearing a pair of trochanters for the attachment of muscles, and articulates with the tibia below by a pair of condyles

— called also thigh bone

2 : the segment of an insect's leg that is third from the body