smooth muscle

noun

Definition of smooth muscle

: muscle tissue that lacks cross striations, is made up of elongated spindle-shaped cells having a central nucleus, and is found especially in vertebrate hollow organs and structures (such as the digestive tract and bladder) as thin sheets performing functions not subject to direct voluntary control and in all or most of the musculature of invertebrates other than arthropods — compare striated muscle

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That's because pregnancy hormone progesterone causes the smooth muscles in both the esophagus and bowel to relax. — Felissa Allard, SELF, "These Are The Pregnancy Pains You Shouldn’t Ignore," 8 July 2019 Under sedation, a small catheter is introduced through a bronchoscope to deliver a safe amount of heat to reduce excess smooth muscle in the lungs. — Tracy Maness, Houston Chronicle, "Treatment helps adults manage asthma at Memorial Hermann Greater Heights," 30 Apr. 2018

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

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Last Updated

16 Jul 2019

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The first known use of smooth muscle was circa 1890

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smooth muscle

noun

Medical Definition of smooth muscle

: muscle tissue that lacks cross striations, that is made up of elongated spindle-shaped cells having a central nucleus, and that is found especially in vertebrate hollow organs and structures (as the small intestine and bladder) as thin sheets performing functions not subject to direct voluntary control and in all or most of the musculature of invertebrates other than arthropods

— called also nonstriated muscle, unstriated muscle

— compare cardiac muscle, striated muscle