synovial fluid

noun

Definition of synovial fluid

: a transparent viscid lubricating fluid secreted by a membrane of an articulation, bursa, or tendon sheath

Recent Examples of synovial fluid from the Web

Osteoarthritis is chronic joint inflammation that causes damage to articular cartilage – which covers and protects the ends of bones – as well as changes to synovial fluid and narrowing of the joint space.

— kim campbell thornton, sacbee, "A painful truth: One-fifth of dogs, many cats develop osteoarthritis," 30 May 2018
Where the two bones of the finger meet, a little lake of synovial fluid keeps them from grinding on each other.

— veronique greenwood, New York Times, "Why Do Cracking Knuckles Make That Noise? You Might Need a Calculator," 29 Mar. 2018
But the problem is the drugs are cleared fairly quickly, because there’s an efficient drainage system for the joint’s synovial fluid.

— megan thielking, STAT, "Drug-loaded hydrogel responds to arthritis flare-ups in real time," 3 Apr. 2018
The bones in the MCP joint touch and separate all the time, leading to reduced pressure in the synovial fluid trapped in the spaces, which in turn forms bubbles.

— jeffrey kluger, Time, "Why Does Cracking Your Knuckles Make So Much Noise? Science Finally Has an Answer," 29 Mar. 2018
This is a common condition in which the knee’s natural lubricant, called synovial fluid, diminishes with age, resulting in painful friction of the knee joints.

— joyce wiswell for the knee institute, Detroit Free Press, "Avoid knee surgery with cutting-edge therapies," 14 Mar. 2018
There's a liquid called synovial fluid that acts as lubricant between your joints and the fluid has all types of gas in it, like oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide.

— noelle devoe, Seventeen, "The Scientific Reason Behind Every Weird Sound Your Body Makes," 26 Oct. 2017

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