tendon

noun

ten·don | \ ˈten-dən

Definition of tendon

: a tough cord or band of dense white fibrous connective tissue that unites a muscle with some other part (such as a bone) and transmits the force which the muscle exerts

Examples of tendon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For context, Justin Morneau played through the injury after rupturing his tendon in 2012. — Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, "Twins DH Nelson Cruz lands on injured list with wrist injury," 9 Aug. 2019 Only later did MRIs reveal micro-tears in my tendons, and that ignoring my pain would lead to larger complications. — Kalpana Mohanty, Teen Vogue, "Being Diagnosed With a Chronic Illness Taught Me That Health Isn't a Meritocracy," 5 July 2019 Unlike human nails, a cat's claws are attached to bone, so declawing a feline requires a veterinarian to slice through tendon and nerves to remove the last segment of bone in a cat's toes. — CBS News, "New York state on path to become first in nation to ban cat declawing," 5 June 2019 Unlike human nails, a cat’s claws are attached to bone, so declawing a feline requires a veterinarian to slice through tendon and nerves to remove the last segment of bone in a cat’s toes. — Washington Post, "New York poised to become first state to ban cat declawing," 5 June 2019 Durant ruptured his Achilles’ tendon in the N.B.A. finals about three weeks ago and is likely to miss all of the 2019-20 season. — Scott Cacciola, New York Times, "Kyrie Irving Commits to Brooklyn, Cementing Nets as Kings of New York," 30 June 2019 That shifts the weight of the head from the spine to muscles in the back of the head, which causes bones to grow in the tendons and ligaments. — Chris Morris, Fortune, "Cell Phones Might Be Causing Horns to Grow on Young People's Skulls," 20 June 2019 Haynes wore a gray jumpsuit with rips in the legs that showed off scars where cancer had caused the 48-year-old Reisterstown woman to have her femur removed and her knee reconstructed from her calf muscle and a tendon from a cadaver. — Colin Campbell, baltimoresun.com, "'I am a miracle': Cancer survivors take the runway at annual Hopkins fashion show," 9 June 2019 Trigger thumb occurs when a tendon that controls thumb motions becomes overworked and constricted, while thumb arthritis is centered on the joint where the thumb connects to the wrist. — Jennifer Jolly, USA TODAY, "Tech neck, texting thumb: top bad tech habits and how to fix them," 3 Apr. 2018

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

History and Etymology for tendon

borrowed from Medieval Latin tendōn-, tendō, probably derivative of Latin tendere "to extend outward, stretch" after Greek tenont-, ténōn "sinew, tendon," from ten-, variant stem of teínein "to stretch, extend" + -ont-, -ōn, deverbal noun suffix — more at tender entry 3

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Last Updated

6 Sep 2019

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Time Traveler for tendon

The first known use of tendon was in 1541

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More Definitions for tendon

tendon

noun

English Language Learners Definition of tendon

: a tough piece of tissue in your body that connects a muscle to a bone

See the full definition for tendon in the English Language Learners Dictionary

tendon

noun

ten·don | \ ˈten-dən

Kids Definition of tendon

: a band of tough white fiber connecting a muscle to another part (as a bone)

tendon

noun

ten·don | \ ˈten-dən

Medical Definition of tendon

: a tough cord or band of dense white fibrous connective tissue that unites a muscle with some other part, transmits the force which the muscle exerts, and is continuous with the connective-tissue epimysium and perimysium of the muscle and when inserted into a bone with the periosteum of the bone