posterior cruciate ligament

noun

Definition of posterior cruciate ligament

: a cruciate ligament of each knee that attaches the back of the tibia with the front of the femur and functions especially to limit the backward motion of the tibia

Recent Examples of posterior cruciate ligament from the Web

After starting the first seven games of the season at Ole Miss, Patterson's year was cut short due to a posterior cruciate ligament injury.

— nick baumgardner, Detroit Free Press, "Shea Patterson welcomes competition, ready to learn Michigan offense," 20 Dec. 2017
Patterson tore his posterior cruciate ligament during the first half of a 40-24 loss to LSU on Oct. 21, and was out for the season.

— chris howard, ajc, "Ex-Michigan RB Chris Howard: Shea Patterson could be perfect fit — if he wins job," 13 Dec. 2017
Meanwhile, winger Marco Reus is still out after tearing a posterior cruciate ligament in the German Cup final last May. He isn't expected to return until March next year.

— USA TODAY, "Dortmund's early season elation gone after week to forget," 19 Oct. 2017
QUICK KICKS - It goes from bad to worse for Ole Miss, which not only lost at home 40-24 to LSU to drop to 3-4, but lost quarterback Shea Patterson for the season with a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.

— george schroeder, USA TODAY, "Final Whistle: Penn State announces itself as title contender with rout of Michigan," 22 Oct. 2017
Reid injured his posterior cruciate ligament on Sunday at Seattle and will miss at least Thursday night's home game for the 49ers (0-2) against the Los Angeles Rams.

— USA TODAY, "49ers S Eric Reid sidelined with left knee injury," 18 Sep. 2017
According to the report, Patterson tore the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee on a non-contact play in the first half of the Rebels' 40-24 loss in Oxford.

— creg stephenson, AL.com, "Ole Miss QB Shea Patterson out for year with torn knee ligament, report says," 22 Oct. 2017

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

First Known Use of posterior cruciate ligament

1981

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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Medical Dictionary

posterior cruciate ligament

noun

medical Definition of posterior cruciate ligament

: a cruciate ligament of each knee that is attached medially in back between the condyles of the tibia, that passes upward and forward through the middle of the knee crossing the anterior cruciate ligament to attach to the medial aspect of the femur, that functions to prevent hyperflexion of the knee and to keep the tibia from sliding backward in relation to the femur when the knee is flexed, and that is stronger and less subject to sports injury by tearing than the anterior cruciate ligament — called also PCL