postcranial

adjective

post·​cra·​ni·​al ˌpōst-ˈkrā-nē-əl How to pronounce postcranial (audio)
: of or relating to the part of the body caudal to the head
postcranial skeleton
postcranially adverb

Examples of postcranial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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In 2018, however, the postcranial bones popped up in a collection of tens of thousands. Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 10 Nov. 2025 However, multiple studies over the past 50 years have highlighted the distinctions between different types of giraffe based on their pelage patterns, cranial and postcranial morphology, genetics, ecology, and behavior. Grrlscientist, Forbes, 9 Jan. 2025 None of the early species contained these traces, indicating that postcranial skeletal pneumaticity hadn’t yet evolved. Jeanne Timmons, Ars Technica, 26 July 2023 Numerous other cranial and postcranial features in the Krapina Neandertals overlap with early modern humans, too. David W. Frayer, Scientific American, 1 Feb. 2022 Meachen and Samuels looked to the postcranial skeletons of coyotes and grey wolves from the late Pleistocene to the modern era to track how the canids changed. Brian Switek, WIRED, 27 Sep. 2012

Word History

First Known Use

1879, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of postcranial was in 1879

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Cite this Entry

“Postcranial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/postcranial. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.

Medical Definition

postcranial

adjective
post·​cra·​ni·​al -ˈkrā-nē-əl How to pronounce postcranial (audio)
: of or relating to the part of the body caudal to the head
a postcranial skeleton
postcranially adverb
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