sty·lo·pha·ryn·ge·us | \ ˌstī-lō-fə-ˈrin-jē-əs, -ˌfar-ən-ˈjē-əs 
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\ plural stylopharyngei\ -jē-ˌī \
\Medical Definition of stylopharyngeus
: a slender muscle that arises from the base of the styloid process of the temporal bone, inserts into the side of the pharynx, and acts with the contralateral muscle in swallowing to increase the transverse diameter of the pharynx by drawing its sides upward and laterally
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