Other forms: ligaments
A ligament is the strong band that holds two bones together at a joint. Tear a ligament, the cruciate ligament, ligament damage.
The cruciate ligaments cross inside the knee and hold it stable, and tearing one is the injury that ends more sporting careers than any other. Ligaments join bone to bone where tendons join muscle to bone, and both heal slowly.
1nounligamentThe strong band that holds two bones together at a joint.
“The skier tore a ligament in her knee and needed surgery.”
ligament is a body part.
Latin ligamentum comes from ligare, to bind. Ligature and oblige are relatives.
Proto-Indo-European
*leyǵ-
Latin
ligāmentum
Middle English
ligament
English, today
ligament
Built from
From Middle English ligament, from Latin ligāmentum, from ligō (“tie, bind”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA