inner ear

noun

Updated on: 16 May 2018

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

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Recent Examples of inner ear from the Web

That’s because presbycusis is most commonly caused by gradual changes in the inner ear, including the wear and tear to the hair cells brought on by noise.

— julia belluz, Vox, "Noise isn’t just annoying — it wrecks our hearing," 9 May 2018
Meniere’s disease is an inner ear disorder that produces feelings of vertigo, as well as tinnitus (or ringing) and hearing loss.

— jordan runtagh, PEOPLE.com, "Huey Lewis Opens Up About Sudden Hearing Loss: 'I Haven't Come to Grips with the Fact That I May Never Sing Again'," 7 May 2018
Delicate structures in the skull, like facial nerves, taste nerves, inner ear and balance organs can't be affected, while bone filings and blood can blurry a microscope during surgery.

— laura yan, Popular Mechanics, "This Robot Surgeon Will Drill Right Into Your Skull," 28 Apr. 2018
The result serves up visual treats, including: White blood cells on a search, destroy, and tidying-up mission inside the inner ears of developing zebrafish embryos.

— jeffery delviscio, STAT, "A new microscope spies the raucous beauty within living cells," 19 Apr. 2018
Each of your ears is made up of three different parts: the outer, middle, and inner ear.

— amber brenza, SELF, "Why Do My Earbuds Always Fall Out?," 4 Feb. 2018
His inner ears, however, will contradict this by sensing the motion of the vehicle.

— The Economist, "The upchuck wagonPreventing passengers in autonomous cars from feeling queasy," 1 Feb. 2018
Of particular concern are benign Schwann cell tumors called acoustic neuromas, which affect nerve cells connecting the inner ear with structures inside the brain.

— charles schmidt, Scientific American, "New Studies Link Cell Phone Radiation with Cancer," 29 Mar. 2018
For six years of his life, unknown to us, an aggressive growth had snowballed in my son’s inner ear, dissolving bone structures in its path and burrowing toward his skull.

— abigail shrier, WSJ, "‘Knock It Off’ and ‘Shake It Off’: The Case for Dad-Style Parenting," 12 Mar. 2018

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

First Known Use of inner ear

1855

in the meaning defined above

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INNER EAR Defined for English Language Learners

inner ear

noun

Definition of inner ear for English Language Learners

biology : the part of the ear that is located within your head and that controls hearing and balance

INNER EAR Defined for Kids

inner ear

noun

Definition of inner ear for Students

: the inner part of the ear that is located in a bony cavity and plays a key role in hearing and keeping the body properly balanced

Medical Dictionary

inner ear

noun

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

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See words that rhyme with inner ear Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about inner ear

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inner ear

Definition of inner ear

Recent Examples of inner ear from the Web

First Known Use of inner ear

INNER EAR Defined for English Language Learners

inner ear

Definition of inner ear for English Language Learners

INNER EAR Defined for Kids

inner ear

Definition of inner ear for Students

Medical Dictionary

inner ear

medical Definition of inner ear

Learn More about inner ear

Seen and Heard

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inner ear

Definition of inner ear

Recent Examples of inner ear from the Web

First Known Use of inner ear

INNER EAR Defined for English Language Learners

inner ear

Definition of inner ear for English Language Learners

INNER EAR Defined for Kids

inner ear

Definition of inner ear for Students

Medical Dictionary

inner ear

medical Definition of inner ear

Learn More about inner ear

Seen and Heard

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