PTERYGOID Pter"y*goid, a. Etym: [Gr. -oid.] (Anat.) (a) Like a bird's wing in form; as, a pterygoid bone. (b) Of, pertaining to, or in the region of, the pterygoid bones, pterygoid processes, or the whole sphenoid bone. — n.
Defn: A pterygoid bone. Pterygoid bone (Anat.), a bone which corresponds to the inner plate of the pterygoid process of the human skull, but which, in all vertebrates below mammals, is not connected with the posterior nares, but serves to connect the palatine bones with the point of suspension of the lower jaw. — Pterygoid process (Anat.), a process projecting downward from either side of the sphenoid bone, in man divided into two plates, an inner and an outer. The posterior nares pass through the space, called the pterygoid fossa, between the processes.
PTERYGOMAXILLARY
Pter`y*go*max"il*la*ry, a. Etym: [Pterygoid + maxillary.] (Anat.)
Defn: Of or pertaining to the inner pterygoid plate, or pterygoid bone, and the lower jaw.
PTERYGOPALATINE
Pter`y*go*pal"a*tine, a. Etym: [Pterygoid + palatine.] (Anat.)
Defn: Of or pertaining to the pterygoid processes and the palatine bones.
PTERYGOPODIUM
Pter`y*go*po"di*um, n.; pl. Pterygopodia. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Anat.)
Defn: A specially modified part of the ventral fin in male elasmobranchs, which serves as a copulatory organ, or clasper.
PTERYGOQUADRATE
Pter`y*go*quad"rate, a. Etym: [Pterygoid + quadrate.] (Anat.)
Defn: Of, pertaining to, or representing the pterygoid and quadrate bones or cartilages.