vagus nerve

noun

va·​gus nerve ˈvā-gəs- 

: either of the 10th pair of cranial nerves that arise from the medulla oblongata and supply chiefly the viscera especially with autonomic sensory and motor fibers

called also vagus

Examples of vagus nerve in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Cold showers stimulate the vagus nerve, reduce inflammation, and activate parts of the brain that can calm the body after long exposure. —Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 9 Nov. 2025

The vagus nerve acts as a direct line between the gut and the brain. —Lauryn Higgins, Time, 4 Nov. 2025

When wheat, stress or other triggers shift the gut’s microbiome or fermentable load, the gut sends distress signals up the vagus nerve. —New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2025

An ice bath, by contrast, jolts the whole nervous system—not just the vagus nerve, Tracey wrote in an op-ed published in 2024. —Clarissa Brincat, Popular Science, 25 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin vagus nervus, literally, "wandering nerve,"; so called from its multiplicity of connecting points in the neck, thorax, and abdomen — more at vague

First Known Use

1856, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for vagus nerve

• conserve
• deserve
• manoeuvre
• observe
• preserve
• reserve
• subserve
• curve
• mirv
• serve
• swerve
• verve

Medical Definition

vagus nerve

noun

: either of the tenth pair of cranial nerves that arise from the medulla and supply chiefly the viscera especially with autonomic sensory and motor fibers

called also pneumogastric nerve, tenth cranial nerve, vagus