long bone

noun

: any of the elongated bones supporting a vertebrate limb and consisting of an essentially cylindrical shaft that contains bone marrow and ends in enlarged heads for articulation with other bones compare diaphysis, epiphysis

Examples of long bone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On June 17, 2022, 23 years after Kinney disappeared, a family searching for seashells found a long bone sticking out of the sand on Salmon Creek Beach. —Saleen Martin, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2026

Then, on June 17, 2022, a family looking for sea shells on Salmon Creek Beach in Sonoma County, California, made a chilling discovery: a long bone sticking out of the sand. —Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026

The tibia is a long bone, the second longest in the body, in the leg that spans from the ankle to the knee. —Devon Henderson, New York Times, 10 Feb. 2026

Investigators later searched the Ephrata home and storage unit of Jonathan Christ Gerlach, 34, and reported finding more than 100 human skulls, long bones, mummified hands and feet, two decomposing torsos and other skeletal items. —Mark Scolforo, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1697, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for long bone

• alone
• atone
• backbone
• bemoan
• bluestone
• breastbone
• brownstone
• capstone
• cheekbone
• condone
• curbstone
• cyclone

Kids Definition

long bone

noun

: one of the bones supporting a limb of a vertebrate and consisting of a long nearly cylinder-shaped shaft that contains bone marrow and has enlarged ends

Medical Definition

long bone

noun

: any of the elongated bones supporting a vertebrate limb and consisting of an essentially cylindrical shaft that contains bone marrow and ends in enlarged heads for articulation with other bones