Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

sartorius

play
noun sar·to·ri·us \ sär-ˈtȯr-ē-əs \

Definition of sartorius

plural -rii play \sär-ˈtȯr-ē-ˌī, -ē-ˌē\
:a muscle that crosses the front of the thigh obliquely, assists in rotating the leg to the cross-legged position in which the knees are spread wide apart, and in humans is the longest muscle

People Are Reading

stylized-drawing-of-woman-pole-vaulting-across-gap-to-get-trophy
Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!
alt-59c17b8172892
'So Long': A Common But Mysterious Goodbye
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066
alt-59c2b2e5e6d34
Trending: Graham: Health Care Bill Is 'Federalism'

Origin and Etymology of sartorius

New Latin, from Medieval Latin sartor tailor, from Latin sarcire to mend

Medical Dictionary

sartorius

play
noun sar·to·ri·us \ sär-ˈtōr-ē-əs \

medical Definition of sartorius

plural -rii play \-ē-ˌī\
:a muscle that arises from the anterior superior iliac spine, crosses the front of the thigh obliquely to insert on the upper part of the inner surface of the tibia, is the longest muscle in the human body, and acts to flex, abduct, and rotate the thigh laterally at the hip joint and to flex the leg at the knee joint and to rotate it medially in a way that enables one to sit with the heel of one leg on the knee of the opposite leg

Illustration of sartorius

Learn More about sartorius

  1. See words that rhyme with sartorius

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up sartorius? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

holus-bolus

play

all at once

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. federalism Graham says bill gives power to states

  2. bodega "Don’t mess with the beloved bodega."

  3. carceral Of, relating to, or suggesting a jail or prison

  4. allegory No spoilers!

  5. hurricane 'A tropical cyclone'

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

sartorius

Test Your Vocabulary

Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

  • stylized-drawing-of-woman-pole-vaulting-across-gap-to-get-trophy
  • Which is a synonym of fuliginous?
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Citation

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

image536372841
Silent Letters

When each letter can be seen but not heard

alt-59c17b8172892
'So Long': A Common But Mysterious Goodbye

Its origins are surprisingly murky.

alt-59c13729150dc
"Immune to" or "Immune from"?

Nobody is immune to this question.

alt-59bff395cf879
What's Going On With 'Nonplussed'?

Its recent usage is hard to shrug off.

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

stylized-drawing-of-woman-pole-vaulting-across-gap-to-get-trophy
Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

No tricks, just difficult words.

Take the quiz
name-that-color-logo
Name that Color!

NEW! Additional colors! More obscure than before!

Take the quiz
Name That Thing
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Take the quiz
Citation
Citation

Do you know the person or title these quotes describe?

Play the game