mandible

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noun man·di·ble \ ˈman-də-bəl \

Definition of mandible

1 a :jaw 1a; especially :a lower jaw consisting of a single bone or of completely fused bones

b :the lower jaw with its investing soft parts

c :either the upper or lower segment of the bill of a bird

2 :any of various invertebrate mouthparts serving to hold or bite food materials; especially :either member of the anterior pair of mouth appendages of an arthropod often forming strong biting jaws

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mandibular

play \man-ˈdi-byə-lər\ adjective

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mandibulate

play \-lət\ adjective

See mandible defined for English-language learners

See mandible defined for kids

Recent Examples of mandible from the Web

Fire ants use their mandibles (jaws) just to latch on to your skin.

— dennis pillion | dpillion@al.com, AL.com, "Fire ants are hard to control, even with decapitating flies on the job," 20 Aug. 2017
The discovery was rare because both the animal's mandible and a tusk were exposed to the surface, Houde said in a paper published on his website about Jude's discovery.

— amy b wang, chicagotribune.com, "These boys thought they'd found 'a big, fat rotten cow.' It was a 1 million-year-old fossil," 21 July 2017
Elina Svitolina—who’s already won four titles year—stole victory from the mandible of defeat, beating Petra Martic after being down 2-5, 0-30 in the third set.

— jon wertheim, SI.com, "Women's favorites remain, top men win with physical tennis as quarterfinals begin," 5 June 2017
After Lavin complained of pain in his jaw, X-rays showed there was a hole in his mandible.

— john maffei, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Illness intrudes on a senior’s grand finale," 4 May 2017
In the tunnels and on the dusty earth, termites fell by the score and warrior ants lost limbs and perished under the pincer shear of terrible mandibles.

— william herkewitz, Popular Mechanics, "These Ants Leave No Wounded Warrior Behind," 14 Apr. 2017
Wood, then a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley, was in South America to study trap-jaw spiders, so named for their habit of sneaking up behind prey and rapidly snapping their mandibles shut.

— National Geographic, "Watch Spider Jaws Move as Quickly as World's Fastest Runner," 7 Apr. 2016
While Janzen can’t say if the jewel’s goo is toxic or not, the stuff can gum up the mandibles of something like an attacking ant.

— matt simon, WIRED, "Absurd Creature of the Week: It’s Not a Jewel—It’s the World’s Most Stunning Caterpillar," 30 Oct. 2015

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

Origin and Etymology of mandible

Middle English, from Late Latin mandibula, from Latin mandere to chew; probably akin to Greek masasthai to chew

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First Known Use: 15th century

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MANDIBLE Defined for English Language Learners

mandible

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noun

Definition of mandible for English Language Learners

: either the upper or lower part of a bird's beak
: a part of an insect's mouth that looks like a jaw and is often used for biting things

MANDIBLE Defined for Kids

mandible

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noun man·di·ble \ ˈman-də-bəl \

Definition of mandible for Students

1 :a lower jaw often with its soft parts

2 :either the upper or lower part of the bill of a bird

3 :either of a pair of mouth parts of some invertebrates (as an insect) that are usually used for biting

Medical Dictionary

mandible

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noun man·di·ble \ ˈman-də-bəl \

medical Definition of mandible

1 a :jaw 1; especially :jaw 1b

b :the lower jaw with its investing soft parts

2 :any of various invertebrate mouthparts serving to hold or bite food materials; especially :either member of the anterior pair of mouth appendages of an arthropod often forming strong biting jaws