meniscus

noun

me·nis·cus | \ mə-ˈnis-kəs

plural menisci\ -ˈni-ˌskī

, -ˌskē , -ˌsī \ also meniscuses

Definition of meniscus

1 : a crescent or crescent-shaped body

2 : a concavo-convex lens

3 : the curved upper surface of a column of liquid

4 : a fibrous cartilage within a joint especially of the knee

Examples of meniscus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Structural problems such as ligament or meniscus tears are usually another story. — SELF, "How to Know When It’s Safe to Run Through Knee Pain and When You Need to Stop," 7 Dec. 2018 Common conditions include runner’s knee (or patellofemoral pain syndrome), IT (iliotibial) band syndrome, ligament tears (ACL and MCL tears being the most common), and meniscus tears (a tear of the cartilage in the knee joint). — SELF, "How to Know When It’s Safe to Run Through Knee Pain and When You Need to Stop," 7 Dec. 2018 Cross anything off your list that could conceivably involve crossing paths with the Taliban or needing to get your meniscus repaired. — Joe Queenan, WSJ, "It’s Time to Kick the Bucket List," 20 July 2018 The meniscus is made up of cartilage in the knee and can sometimes be connected to an MCL injury. — Tania Ganguli, latimes.com, "Lonzo Ball awaits more information on left meniscus, but injury isn't considered serious," 30 June 2018 His ability to shoot at his size may earn him another chance or two, but he’s torn the same ACL twice in addition to a meniscus in the same knee. — Jeremy Woo, SI.com, "2018 NBA Draft: Final Top 100 Prospect Rankings," 18 June 2018 Wisconsin cornerback Nick Nelson had a meniscus tear scoped this month after being injured in a workout. — Profootballdoc, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Top 10 medical concerns in NFL draft," 26 Apr. 2018 Lonnie Walker was regarded as one of the top shooting guards in his recruiting class, but a meniscus tear suffered last summer disrupted the start of his college career. — Chris Johnson, SI.com, "2018 NBA Draft: Lonnie Walker Scouting Report and Highlights," 18 June 2018 Eckerstrom's chance to start finally came at the end of April under unfortunate circumstances after Franch suffered a meniscus tear. — Jamie Goldberg, OregonLive.com, "Portland Thorns goalkeeper Britt Eckerstrom striving to make the most of opportunity on the field," 2 May 2018

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

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8 Feb 2019

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The first known use of meniscus was in 1685

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meniscus

noun

me·nis·cus | \ mə-ˈnis-kəs

plural menisci\ -ˈnis-ˌ(k)ī, -ˌkē

\ also meniscuses

Medical Definition of meniscus

1 : a crescent or crescent-shaped body

2 : a fibrous cartilage within a joint:

a : either of two crescent-shaped lamellae of fibrocartilage that border and partly cover the articulating surfaces of the tibia and femur at the knee : semilunar cartilage:

(1) : one mostly between the lateral condyles of the tibia and femur

— called also external semilunar fibrocartilage, lateral meniscus, lateral semilunar cartilage

(2) : one mostly between the medial condyles of the tibia and femur

— called also internal semilunar fibrocartilage, medial meniscus, medial semilunar cartilage

b : a thin oval ligament of the temporomandibular joint that is situated between the condyle of the mandible and the mandibular fossa and separates the joint into two cavities

3 : a concavo-convex lens

4 : the curved upper surface of a liquid column that is concave when the containing walls are wetted by the liquid and convex when not