Today it means: A long, fleshy longitudinal muscle, narrower in the middle than at either end, that arises from the soft palate, contributes with the mucous membrane covering its surface to the structure of the palatopharyngeal arch, and is inserted into the thyroid cartilage and the wall of the pharynx; it serves to constrict the fauces and draw the larynx and pharynx upwards. Full definition →
Borrowed from Late Latin palātopharyngeus, clipping of mūsculus palātopharyngeus (“palatopharyngeal muscle”). Doublet of palatopharyngeal.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.